Lala Land

[Bobadohshe]

Has this been discussed on the forum yet? I Google searched for it but nothing came up. I saw it today. It's quite relevant to our discussions on this board.

 

Before belching forth my many thoughts on it I wondered if it had been talked about already as it's been out for awhile.

[Kawai James]

The movie hasn't been released over here yet (Wikipedia lists 24th February), but I'm looking forward to.

 

I've had a man-crush on Ryan Gosling since watching him in 'Half Nelson', and he's undoubtedly one of my favourite actors (of my generation).

 

Sorry, I don't have anything more to add, I'm afraid.

 

Cheers,

James

x

[RudyS]

I haven't seen it. Liked the idea, but then saw a quite terrible song in the trailer which kinda put me down.

 

But now a lot of people around me do say it is really worth watching, so I think I will go see it.

[Markay]

Didn't it clean up at the Golden Globe, 7 Awards including Best Musical or Comedy, Best Original song.

 

Been showing here since Boxing Day, might get along to see it.

[cedar]

I took my family to see it. I thought it was diverting but over-hyped. My family liked it more. Our different opinions might have something to do with my familiarity and fondness for musicals from the 1940s-1950s. This was in the spirit of those movies, but in my opinion didn't measure up to the best of them.

[montunoman]

I agree with Cedar, musically it didn't hold up well to the classics, but as a musician, I could definitely relate to the story. I enjoyed it.

[Sam Mullins]

I thought it was fun, but agree that it is being hyped too much. There is less music than many movie musicals (particularly in the latter half of the movie.) The music was pleasant but nothing earth-shattering. I actually enjoyed the dancing more (which I have no expertise in )

 

As noted in another thread, The Roli Seaboard makes a prominent appearance; however, I'm doubtful that the blazing synth solo played in the movie was actually performed on that board.

 

As a movie musical, I would put it between Moulin Rouge (which I hated) and Chicago (which I adored.)

 

[Threadslayer]

I'm not into musicals, so I won't be going to see it, but I've had two people tell me recently that what they found most interesting was the scenery around Los Angeles and that if it weren't for that, they probably wouldn't have cared for it much.

[timwat]

Just saw it this weekend w/ the fiancé. She's a redhead (and far hotter than Emma Stone).

 

Twenty minutes into it I leaned over and whispered, "They made a film of our story...and they got Ryan Gosling to play me!" (you see, I rocked my red keytar during one of the first gigs she came to as well...)

 

Random thoughts (spoiler alert!):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1) Whether Gosling can actually play or they made him practice a ton, he did a great job of not "miming" the piano lines his character plays. I appreciated the work.

 

2) Reminded me instantly of the quote, "Sure Fred Astaire was great, but don't forget Ginger Rogers did everything he did...backwards and in high heels."

 

3) Knew nothing about it going in - my son commended the film to me. Wasn't expecting a old time musical - dancing and songs - but was pleasantly surprised.

 

4) Had read an article claiming Gosling's character was "mansplaining" jazz to Emma Stone's character. Had to agree that there was a fair amount of "Jazz for Dummies" feel to the first 1/3 of the film.

 

5) The "not on my watch" line had me LOL'ing at the absurdity.

 

6) John Legend. You tell 'em how it really is, boss.

 

7) Kronos!

 

8) Roli Seaboard!

 

9) Was a tad sad it ended the way it did. My fiancé was also less than enthused about the ending.

 

10) Kronos!

 

11) Was gently informed that his shoes were a bit much. Now, I tend to like saddle shoes and have a pair or two. But apparently these days they are perceived by many ladies as a sign of trying too hard. Cue the dandy alert. Hello, man bun narcissist.

 

12) Kronos!

 

13) The whole "follow your dream" "do you like what you're doing" dialogue smacked of "Millenial!!" to me. Well, target audience and all, I suppose.

 

14) Finally - how does Gosling's character get away with traipsing off his pool party gig without tearing down or loading out????? Clearly, this movie is fantasy. Damn Hollywood taking liberties. That movie's not complete without a Rock 'n Roller and bungie chords.

 

[Mike Martin]

1) Whether Gosling can actually play or they made him practice a ton, he did a great job of not "miming" the piano lines his character plays. I appreciated the work.

 

I read that he played everything.

[George88]

Whoever played piano on the recordings is a monster.

[drawback]

Being totally judgemental here, I refuse to go to 1) any more Ryan Gosling movies since Crazy, Stupid Love; 2) any more movies recommended by non-musicians, about "what its like to be a musician," since Whiplash.

[Sam Mullins]

Being totally judgemental here, I refuse to go to 1) any more Ryan Gosling movies since Crazy, Stupid Love; 2) any more movies recommended by non-musicians, about "what its like to be a musician," since Whiplash.

 

Gosling was sleazy in Crazy, Stupid, Love...but he was supposed to be and I enjoyed that movie.

 

But I have to agree on Whiplash; didn't care for that one at all.

[MathOfInsects]

I won't be seeing it. I have hit my maximum number times falling for the whole, "I know you hate musicals, but this one is different and you should go!" thing.

[Sam Mullins]

I won't be seeing it. I have hit my maximum number times falling for the whole, "I know you hate musicals, but this one is different and you should go!" thing.

 

Yeah...if you don't like musicals, then there is no point. Musicals are by definition kind of silly, so if you can't get past that, it's gonna be a long two hours.

 

I usually state it the other way "If you like musicals, then this movie is [good, bad, whatever]"

[Bobadohshe]

I won't be seeing it. I have hit my maximum number times falling for the whole, "I know you hate musicals, but this one is different and you should go!" thing.

 

Then steer clear. The only thing that makes this one different is that it is weaker.

[Bobadohshe]

Well here are my thoughts copied and pasted from FB:

 

Suffice to say in this small space: there was plenty to enjoy, there was plenty that was flawed. If you loved it I'm not mad at you. There are harmless gaffes (Priuses don't sound like that, traffic going wrong way on 105/110 connector) and more complex problems.

Complex problems in a nutshell:

-False dichotomy of selling out vs chasing your dreams as a musician. I played a killer jazz gig with amazing musicans today for an appreciative audience and I played in a Top 40 cover band for a corporate event on Saturday. Doesn't have to be either or. In fact doing both is FUN and rewarding for many reasons.

-White nostalgia -- Nostalgia can be fun but this is too much and by trying to be on some throwback Fred Astaire tip this both falls short on its artistic potential and alters the reality of what L.A. Jazz and L.A. in general is really like. White guy trying to save real jazz - it doesn't need you to do it. Also the Lighthouse hasn't had an all black audience dancing with big smiles on their faces like that for 50 years (if ever).

--I hate to say it because it sounds like some holier than thou sour grapes but the music wasn't all that great. The jazz was good. The Messengers were good (ha!). But the musical numbers were vanilla. Too vanilla. Not memorable. I'm not sure why this was and it's possible I'm inadvertently offending those I know who might have worked close to it. The songs could have been stronger, the harmonic content richer. Better compositions. It's possible they were intentionally going for a nostalgia 50s vibe, and if so, they missed the mark on that too because all that stuff was STRONGER MUSIC. Also what the heck was up with Ryan Gosling's signature piano tune? It's a pseudo classical tune with some bursts of technical stuff, but it's not at all jazz, so what's the deal? Seems like a simple Bill Evans- eseque simple ballad would have fit much better. It's confusing!

I'll leave it there. Again, plenty to like. They nailed lots about L.A.. The chemistry between Ryan and Emma was awesome. But it has its problems, ranging from both the harmless to the potentially harmful. I'd urge you to give it a good think. I think it could have been better.

[bfields]

1) Whether Gosling can actually play or they made him practice a ton, he did a great job of not "miming" the piano lines his character plays. I appreciated the work.

 

I read that he played everything.

 

The piano on the soundtrack definitely required a Real Pianist, which he isn't, but he must have learned at least some fragments for when his fingers were clearly on screen. I agree that they did a great job of making the music-playing believable.

 

Anyone that enjoyed this and hasn't seen any Jacques Demy (mainly the "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" and "The Young Girls of Rochefort") definitely should. They're beautiful and interesting movie musicals, and "La La Land" owes a lot to them.

[Musicale]

No need to analyze it. A nice romantic movie to see over the holidays. Some nice effects and a fairly realistic story with a realistic ending. You leave the theater with a tear in your eye and a song in your heart. I don't think it was to highlight classic Musical tunes or terrific dancing either. It was kind of a retro feel to it with nice dramaturgy. The Hurwitz score was pleasant and I now play about three of the songs from the movie. They are really quite simple and the kind of melody you can sing or (whistle) in the shower. The theme kind of reminds me of and I love her (at least the first few bars). So in a nutshell a fun romantic piece just to be enjoyed as entertainment and not analyzed to any extent. It did seem to have a good overall balance.

 

Musicale

[Sam Mullins]

But the musical numbers were vanilla. Too vanilla. Not memorable.

...

Also what the heck was up with Ryan Gosling's signature piano tune? It's a pseudo classical tune with some bursts of technical stuff, but it's not at all jazz, so what's the deal? Seems like a simple Bill Evans- eseque simple ballad would have fit much better. It's confusing!

 

Agree on both these points. I had the exact same reaction to his signature tune, i.e. I was thinking "this is the guy that is the jazz purist??? This isn't any more jazz than the stuff he was playing with the John Legend character."

 

 

[miden]

over blown over-hyped and I suspect it got that many awards becaue of really REALLY good marketing (?) to voters. Crap movie and worth no more than 50 on the Rotten Tomatoes meter I reckon!

[Threadslayer]

Would you believe 93%?

[miden]

yeah that figure was just my guesstimate haha! I have not looked at RT on this one yet. what do I know haha! As a movie reviewer I make a great plumber!

 

88% audience I see too, though I imagine this will drop in time, once all the "non-art-house" people have a look

 

But it really is a silly movie, s'pose most musicals are haha!

 

Can I refer you to your tagline

[El Lobo]

Enjoyed the movie for what it was, but it wasn't that great. Mediocre, limited singing and dancing. Still, I'm glad that it got made.

[Groove58]

I took my family to see it. I thought it was diverting but over-hyped. My family liked it more. Our different opinions might have something to do with my familiarity and fondness for musicals from the 1940s-1950s. This was in the spirit of those movies, but in my opinion didn't measure up to the best of them.

 

That's what we felt also. The high rating on Rotten Tomatoes persuaded us to see it, and we found it entertaining, enjoyable, technically impressive, and better than a lot else now showing, but not in the same league as the movies it was paying tribute to.

[mate stubb]

The bar was set pretty high back then.

 

[video:youtube]

[Kawai James]

Anyone that enjoyed this and hasn't seen any Jacques Demy (mainly the "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" and "The Young Girls of Rochefort") definitely should. They're beautiful and interesting movie musicals, and "La La Land" owes a lot to them.

 

Nice one!

 

"The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" is one of my all time favourites, and my wife seemed to enjoy it when we watched it together recently too, so I'm sure we'll check out "La La Land" when it arrives next month.

 

Cheers,

James

x

[WillNeverPost]

I haven't seen "La La Land" but the idea of it reminds me in a conceptual way of "Down with Love" (2003) with Ewan McGregor and Renée Zellweger. No doubt produced as an homage (and answer) to the Doris Day/Rock Hudson romantic comedies of the sixties (e.g., "Pillow Talk") "Down with Love" couldn't hold a candle to any of them. Something essential was missing.

 

As they say, you can never go back.

[bfields]

"The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" is one of my all time favourites, and my wife seemed to enjoy it when we watched it together recently too, so I'm sure we'll check out "La La Land" when it arrives next month.

 

Keep an eye out for references, they're fun: e.g., the umbrella shop shoes up on a movie set at one point.

[Jazz+]

I was playing solo piano for an event the other night and guy comes up with his girl friend and gushes "Dude, can you play the song from La La Land ? You gotta know it, you gotta play it, all the ladies are dying for it!"

I have no idea what he is talking about, the title alone puts me off "La la land", is it a reality show, a video game? Then he says "Dude, the movie is about you! It's about an unappreciated jazz pianist"! I apologize that I don't know the song he is asking for. A little later I play a peppy Latin version of "Autumn Leaves" when suddenly the girlfriend and the boyfriend come charging back shouting "Dude! That's the song! That's the song!"

 

Anyhow, after I go home I listen to all the songs from the movie and cannot figure out which one is the good one. I guess it's the second half of the big freeway number, that was catchy at least. Most of the songs sound to me like they were written by a young person with a computer with little familiarity of music tradition. Then I read that the composer is the school buddy of that young director who made "Whiplash"... at that point I decide to forget about it for the time being, 'till it gets requested again...