La La Land

A charming update of a classical musical, which, in the captivating rhythm of jazz, tells the sensual story of two souls whose paths were supposed to come together, but they just intersected. It made me so sad and was hard on my soul that I wanted to poke my brain with a needle from a turntable in front of all that technicolor beauty. Do you love jazz this much too? (2017-01-04)

It's been a long time since this genre has been this good. I myself don't understand what the magic is and where that lightness comes from, which so many others are usually lacking. I can't even imagine how hard it must be to gauge the line between genius and kitsch in film music. You can really smell the talent. And Ryan, with Emma by his side, just lays it on like he was born for the part. 4.5 stars. (2017-04-17)

The only musical since Moulin Rouge! that is not only artistically beautiful, but also internally fragile. The most poetic romance since Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. And maybe the ”cutest” movie ever, with its heart on its sleeve. It is a wonderful tribute to film, music, love and the city of stars (pardon, angels), which won’t give you anything for free. Damien Chazelle is a game changer; he understands much more deeply than anyone else. And he does what he wants without disturbing the perfect fulfillment of the genre template. In short, he’s the greatest new filmmaking talent of this decade. (2017-01-23)

Cute, thought-provoking, sad and happy. I like the realistic approach that Chazelle grafted onto the musical structure and its completeness. The dramatic arc in La La Land works incredibly well and indicates an active decision to make very alternative, unusual choices. Gosling and Stone are perfect. (2017-01-24)

To be honest, musicals have never been and never will be my cup of rooibos. On the other hand, though, Damien Chazelle is a lure that I wouldn’t like to miss out on. At least because of Whiplash, which was perfection. You see, despite its plain premise, La La Land has great dance numbers, a perfect couple in the form of Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, some very good songs and an almost perfect final scene, which any lover of films who believes that movies are made mainly to entertain shouldn’t miss out on. However, the entire film doesn’t have only these few strengths, it also proves that Damien Chazelle is not only a precise filmmaker, but also a great lover of jazz music with whom it can be expected that he will be forcing his love for jazz on us a couple more times in the future. And I for one will not mind at all. (2017-01-21)