La La Land
Image: Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and Mia (Emma Stone)
La La Land, a romantic, comedy-drama musical, is the third film to feature Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling as lovers. Mia (Stone) is an aspiring actress, who has moved to Los Angeles to follow her dreams. Sebastian (Gosling) is a struggling jazz musician. The two cross paths on several occasions, and as fate would have it, quickly fall in love.
As their relationship grows, they never truly settle down. Each encourages the other to pursue their respective dreams. They do so out of love. But quickly realise that they cannot have both; they are forced to choose between their love for one another, and their love for their respective art.
While Stone and Gosling can sing, they do not quite meet the mark for a musical. The film lacks the strong, energy infused, musical numbers that one would expect to feature in a musical. (RP)
★★
BY RAFFAELE PICCOLO
