I watched this movie several weeks ago and have been putting off blogging about it because I knew it was going to be very difficult, but I figured I'd better do it before I forget all of my thoughts. Part of me really wishes I'd seen this movie before all the hype and ensuing backlash. I tried not to be too influenced by what people told me and what I saw on the internet, but I probably was. All I heard at first from friends was that it was my kind of movie and I would definitely love it. Then several of my family members saw it and said I would hate it. My actual reaction was somewhere in between; I thought it was fine, somewhat entertaining; not great, not terrible. But I'll try to focus on Emma Stone's performance.
One of the main reasons I knew this was going to be hard to blog about is because I love Emma Stone, and I think she's a very talented actress, but this is my least favorite performance I've seen from her. There were a few moments in the film when I thought, Ah, yes, THERE she is, but those were few and far between. Part of it isn't really her fault because I didn't think the character was very well developed, but the performance could definitely have been better. Her singing and dancing were nothing to write home about, although she sounded like the best singer in the world compared to Ryan Gosling. Hers was kind of meh, but his was just offensive. My apologies to Pierce Brosnan for thinking his singing in Mamma Mia was the worst it could get. Anyway, Stone's singing and dancing are okay, but I was under the impression that this was trying to be a throwback to old Hollywood musicals, and in my opinion it failed miserably. No one could possibly compare Ryan and Emma to Fred and Ginger except ironically. And Fred and Ginger weren't even that great at singing, but their dancing more than made up for it. That was not the case here. I might have overlooked the lack of musical talent if the love story had been executed well, but alas, even that was disappointing. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling had amazing chemistry in Crazy, Stupid Love, but somehow that all disappeared in La La Land. I did not find their love story at all believable.
Nothing against either actor, because I know they are very talented, but personally, I think both Stone and Gosling were miscast in this movie. It could have worked so much better if the leads had been two unknowns with a lot of musical talent, instead of two established stars who can barely hold a tune. Not only would this have made the musical numbers much more effective, but it would have had the added bonus of erasing the inevitability of their success. Of course Emma Stone is going to make it in Hollywood; she's Emma Stone! Random lady I've never seen before with a surprisingly great voice, on the other hand; she's probably going to succeed because it feels like a happy movie, but there's still an element of doubt. I feel like that would have made the story so much more exciting, rather than "Blah Blah Bland," as my sister refers to this movie.
Again, I want to emphasize that I did not hate this movie, and I still love Emma Stone. I just think the movie as a whole, and the leading performances in particular, could have been so much better. I probably would have enjoyed the movie more if I'd watched it before it got a record-tying 14 Oscar nominations though. That's just absurd.
Not sure who's going to win for 2017, but hopefully I'll have more positive things to say about that performance. In the meantime, I am very slowly reading and watching the Best Adapted Screenplay winners, so check out that blog if you're curious.
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