He Said, She Said: La La Land Review

Runtime: 2hr 8min

Director: Damien Chazelle

Release Date: 12th January 2017

Rating: 12A (UK), PG-13 (US)

Critically acclaimed and currently totalling 14 Oscar Nominations, 11 BAFTA Nominations, and 7 Golden Globe wins, musical La La Land is not as incredible as you would expect. Myself and guest writer Natasha tell you why...

Image Source

Plot Summary

La La Land's centres on Seb (Ryan Gosling), an overqualified restaurant pianist with a penchant for Jazz, and Mia (Emma Stone), an aspiring actress lacking in successful auditions. Upon meeting, Mia and Seb push each other to make their struggling dreams a reality, and the movie follows how their relationship moulds as they attempt to reach their goals.

He Said...

Damien Chazelle, director of La La Land, clearly knew with this project that he was on to a winner; but why did he have to make such a song and a dance about it?! With its' dazzling aesthetic and charm, it is difficult to imagine La La Land going home empty-handed at this years' Academy Awards, particularly for costume design and cinematography. Emma Stone clearly the star of the show, I felt Ryan Gosling's performance was not particularly special, nor any of the rest of the cast bar Stone. For its' praised musical elements, certain shots (and songs) were overused at times - every other song, it appeared, would open with dimmed lights and a spotlight on the performer (*eye roll*). Perhaps due to the overwhelming acclaim it has already received, my expectations were set high - and La La Land was not the solid 10/10 I had hoped it to be. The plot itself wasn't overly ambitious, and through all its glitz and retro glamour had an aura of arrogance despite being far from perfect.

7/10

She Said..

Did I like La La Land? Of course! Did I love it? Hmm, perhaps not.. With fantastic use of colour and costumer, as well as a hint of Baz-Luhrmann-esque beauty in its' shots and cuts, the storyline and catchy songs kept my intrigue until the end. But whilst I understand some of the hype, I can't help but feel it could have been a little less pretentious. This self-indulgent piece of cinema portrayed a bland Ryan Gosling, some fairly odd pacing (or total lack there-of), and an unusual, disappointing lack of chemistry between Gosling and Stone. Emma Stone was breath-taking as ever - endearing, gawky and not afraid to laugh at herself - but I felt paired with far too 'Hollywood' a role. The films' music (think 20's speakeasy & Parisian jazz cafe contrasted with blatant cheese), whilst catchy, was paired with some fairly mediocre singing and dancing. The whole thing just seemed a bit unnecessary, and its' overzealous approach to the arts just reminded me of the movie Midnight in Paris (FYI, not a favourite of mine). My final words? Over-hyped but a fun ride.

7.5/10

Throwback Thursday: Trainspotting Review

Runtime: 1hr 36min

Director: Danny Boyle

Release Date: 23rd February 1996

Rating: 18 (UK), R (US)

Due to the much-anticipated release of T2 Trainspotting this weekend, this throwback Thursday called for a re-watch (and review) of the original motion picture.
 

Image Source

Trainspotting was undoubtedly huge; launching director Danny Boyle and the lead cast into stardom shortly after its release - in particular, Ewan McGregor, who went on to perform high-profile roles in films such as Moulin Rouge, Star Wars and Black Hawk Down. Trainspotting was iconic in so many ways; the acting, soundtrack and honest scripting all left their mark on everyone that watched.

Most memorable of all must be Rentons' (McGregor) "Choose Life" speech during the opening scenes, which was not only reprised throughout the movie but brought to life once more in the trailer for its' sequel: T2 Trainspotting. The entirety of the film is filled with moments like this - fast-paced, raw and utterly glorious.

The plot doesn't shield from the harsh realities of the characters' lives; Trainspotting is critical in its storytelling - following Renton and his heroin-addicted lifestyle with his so-called "mates" Spud (Ewen Bremner), Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), Begbie (Robert Carlyle) and Tommy (Kevin McKidd), all portrayed excellently authentic. Scenes like 'the worst toilet in Scotland' provides a great example of how Trainspotting does not care just how disgusted or distressed the viewer may be; it simply shows what it needs to to get the point across.

What is the point though? How did Trainspotting tell such a story of desperate criminal activity whilst still managing to be relatable and enjoyable? The answer lies in its' scripting, casting and uninspiring set. The characters and environment are designed to be as incredibly ordinary as possible, of no real interest and deliberately bland. Characters we love to hate and hate to love and identify with even though we differ greatly. That's the magic of Trainspotting entirely.

Trainspotting is daring and rife with idiosyncrasy; a movie that you can respect while you watch it. Many filmmakers can only dream of recreating what Trainspotting achieved, and in trying only convey an air of pretentiousness. The film still holds up today, is still seemingly somewhat relevant, and the acting is still wonderful even by modern-day standards. I can only hope the sequel can live up to expectation: the bar is set very, very high.

9/10

Review: Moonlight

Runtime: 1hr 51min
Director: Barry Jenkins
Release Date: 16th February 2017
Rating: 15 (UK), R (US)

I had the privilege of previewing Moonlight ahead of the its' UK release date (17th February); a coming-of-age tale told spectacularly.

Image Source

Many modern dramas in this style tend to be artsy, pretentious and not to my tastes. However, Moonlight managed to tell this story with subtlety and confidence, without trying to be overbearing or arrogant.

This particular depiction follows the life of a young black man from Miami, with the film differentiating between three key phases in his life - 'Little', 'Chiron' and 'Black'. Each phase is performed by a different actor, which worked to the movie's advantage - too often is a child-actor hired for a five minute scene just to jump-cut to its' prominent section of the characters' adult life.

The movie bears witness to Chiron's childhood tribulations; overcoming intense bullying, dealing with his drug-addicted mother (played expertly by Naomie Harris), and coming to terms with his sexuality. Throughout the film, Chiron is consistently an underdog, partially due to his race and homosexuality, but mostly because he is a small, timid youth that allows others to figuratively walk all over him.

Something I couldn't praise more highly is the films' cinematography: it is stellar. Calming or carefree moments in Chirons' life are reflected through soft and slow camera moments, whereas dramatic or tense scenes called for their well-used, rough, jarring shots. Scene transitions were almost always instant, until a moment of pure bliss uses a gradual fade to blend scenes.

Moonlight is very subliminal with its' concepts carried throughout - an example being the change in nicknames for Chiron; representative of his choice of who he is, and reflecting childhood advice given to him by a character named Juan (Mahershala Ali) who he meets as a young boy.

The acting quality was wonderful on the most part; Chiron's actors (Alex Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, Trevante Rhodes) clearly studied each other's mannerisms to portray the characters' likeness perfectly. Kevin, the childhood friend, played by Jaden Piner, Jharrel Jerome and Andre Holland, respectively, was also portrayed well. Yet it is Naomie Harris who certainly needs commending; she was near-perfect for the role, and did an excellent job on her accent.

The film did, however, have some things lacking. The characters of Juan and Theresa (Janelle Monáe) were prominent at the very beginning of the film, but shortly after lacked any presence - clearly only present for the purpose of opening the story. I also found a couple of scenes slightly unnecessary - one scene of a sexual nature was clearly only placed for shock-value rather than substance, and a classroom scene alluding to the HIV virus seemed irrelevant to the plot, but thrown in simply because the films' lead was gay.

Image Source

The film also lacked the kind of closure many people like - leaving unanswered questions as the credits rolled. Whilst a sign of intrigue and plot-investment, this also meant the annoyance of open-ended plot points, and left me wondering if the end was justifiable.

All-in-all, Moonlight is an incredibly good movie, with great acting, lighting, cinematography and script. I was pleased to watch it before its' February release date, and would undoubtedly recommend it.

8.5/10