La La Land (Rated T)
Cast: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend
Genre: Romantic comedy-drama musical
Dwight's rating: 2.5 Stars

Mia: It feels really nostalgic to me?
Sebastian: That's the point!
Mia: Are people going to like it?
Sebastian: (Expletive) them!
This scene from "La La Land" perfectly sums up all that is right and wrong with this new romantic comedy-drama musical.
Yes, the film has created a sensation, sending critics and awards shows into a frenzy. They've heaped a stupendous amount of praise on it; last month it won all seven of the Golden Globe Awards for which it was nominated, including Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy. And last week, it garnered a record-tying for most-ever (with "All About Eve" and "Titanic") 14 Academy Award nominations.
But, as stated, "La La Land" is a "romantic comedy-drama musical", combining genres with some well-earned reputations for hokeyness, particularly musicals, which have been a notoriously tough sell proposition in the last two decades. Yet, it proudly wears that "(expletive) them!" if you don't like it.
This ode to the often-superficial nature of the city of Los Angeles (and specifically the "Tinsel Town" aspects of Hollywood), follows Mia, a struggling actress, who has decided to write a one-woman play - hence her concerns about the "nostalgia", and Sebastian's bold retort.
The romance aspects of the story also examine the pitfalls with relationships, and especially those in Hollywood. While Sebastian and Mia are drawn together by their common desire to do what they love, as success mounts, they are faced with decisions that begin to fray the fragile fabric of their love affair. The dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart.
First the positives: Sebastian and Mia are played by the long-respected and admired Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. They have elevated their already transcendent careers to the upper tier with two glitteringly amazing performances here, both cementing their "leading man and woman" status, if ever there was any doubt.
Gosling and Stone both do their own singing and dancing. Additionally, Gosling, who already had some musical ability, apparently took three-months of lessons to make it seem as though he'd been a jazz piano master since he was a kid. Beyond these impressive talents, the film serves as a showcase for the unbelievable chemistry between the stars.
The two light up every scene with what must arguably be the most expressive faces in motion pictures today. Writer/Director Damien Chazelle uses lengthy close-ups with moments of silence when we are made to focus on how both these attractive stars are able to convey more emotion without saying a single word than are most of their peers able to muster while shouting at the screen.
Chazelle wrote and directed "Whiplash", the 2014 film which I still believe was the best of that year and should have won the Oscar for Best Picture over "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)", and co-wrote "10 Cloverfield Lane", last year's exceptionally entertaining mystery/thriller. He should be commended for trying something different with "La La Land". To even think there'd be an appetite for this was quite nervy.
Unfortunately, as is often the case, it's hard for almost anything to live up to massive hype. And "La La Land" is no exception.
When I say singing and dancing, I'm talking full-fledged, Golden Age of Hollywood-style dance numbers, with tap-dancing and gravity-defying/floating-in-air fantasy sequences. Why? Because they can! "(Expletive) it!"
For some - especially those who miss old MGM-style productions (even though you can watch these almost every day on wonderful TV networks like TCM) - these will be magical flashbacks. But for many, this will be downright goofy.
Without a doubt, the whole affair is beautifully choreographed and directed, but it feels odd, especially as the film is in a contemporary setting. It's not like 2002's "Chicago", set in the '20s, with the musical numbers in the more palatable form of the characters' dreams or imaginations.
"La La Land" strikes me as being this year's "The Artist", the 2011 French film that was shot as a silent film and in black-in-white, or the aforementioned "Birdman". Both are about the entertainment business, and both took some big chances (some would say "gimmicks") with their story delivery. Both got a lot of attention, won the Academy Award for Best Picture and struggle under the weight of heightened expectations.
In a year filled with seen-it-all-before sequels, "seen-it-all-before-but-not-in-the-last-few decades" is indeed refreshing. And the exuberance of Gosling and Stone (who along with Director Chazelle, are both Oscar-nominated) make it worth seeing.
However, "La La Land" feels far too much like a big gimmick - schmaltzy and sentimental, campy and slow at times. Now, I love "Singin' in the Rain" or "West Side Story" or "The Sound of Music" as much as the next guy, but they were all appropriate for their times; "La La Land" is forced anachronism.
But as Sebastian would say, that's the point!
o Dwight Strachan is the host/producer of " Morning Blend" on Guardian Radio. He is a television producer and writer, and an avid TV history and film buff. Email dwight@nasguard.com and follow him on twitter@morningblend969.

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