I Loved “La La Land” So Much I Hated It
Alert: This post is filled with spoilers. If you have yet to see “La La Land,” you should go see the film first, with no idea about what is going to happen. Its surprises are magical and charming. If I was a better writer, this post would somehow clump spoilers together further in to the piece, but, alas, I am who I am. And here you are reading it, so, I suppose you are who you are. Trust me: we’ll get through this together.
First things first: “La La Land” is magical. I cannot remember the last time I was so completely swept up in a film’s world with such abandon. Yes, there is singing. Yes, there is dancing. Yes, there is dancing in the air. It’s nostaglic in all the best ways, eschewing the grittiness of most contemporary film for old-fashioned celluloid magic.
And it is indeed magical. The on-screen chemistry between Emma Stone (as Mia) and Ryan Gosling (as Sebstian) is pitch perfect. From the opening scenes of predictable contempt through the slow transformation into love and into the climax of celebration and pain, the two play off one another perfect. Gosling’s jazz piano playing is mesmerizing and real and emotionally raw. And, goodness, when Stone’s Mia goes in for her final audition of the film and sings, “The Fools Who Dream,” the entire theater is transported. Well, at least I was. As Stone belted those notes, it felt as if she were about to strain through the screen. In that scene, she is unbridled power. In a film filled with memorable moments, “The Fools Who Dream” is transcendent.
At that particular moment in the film, I was thinking that “La La Land” would easily one of my favorite films of the year. Perhaps ever.
Only one other scene comes close to the transcendence of “The Fools.” It is the climactic scene when Mia and her husband (Do we ever catch his name?) come into Seb’s and see Gosling’s Sebastian play “Epilogue,” — the theme that has woven Mia and Sebastian together throughout the film. In it, Set plays the reality and the alternative reality that might have been within their relationship. The reality — them choosing their dreams over one another — and the alternative reality — their dreams not coming true but them opting for familial wedded bliss. The song ends. Seb is emotionally spent. Mia exits. But, at the end, they exchange one last look and friendly nod. They mutually agree: We made the right decision. We chose our dreams instead of love.
And this is why I hated “La La Land.”
In logic class a teacher would call this forced decision between dreams and love a false dichotomy. That is, we are led to believe that there is only one possible path. Either Mia and Sebastian choose one another, or they choose the passionate thing in their lives.
Writer-director Damien Chazelle may believe the choice to be so clear. To be sure, when we choose love, we choose the pace and the terms of our dreams. And when we pursue our dreams, we find that love may not be as convenient as we would wish. But Chazelle makes a grave error: He leads us to believe that we must choose, that we cannot be so bold as to choose both. In an interview regarding the creation of “La La Land,” Chazelle tacitly admits the film to be “deeply autobiographical.” In that sense, Chazelle tells the truth. He, apparently, did choose at some point along the way.
The question, of course, is whether he chose correctly. Is he Sebastian or Mia? Is he the one with a bit of haunting wondering what might have been? Or is the one with a complete life — even if it is not quite the life that would have brought fulfilling love?
In the end, Chazelle most likely told his story through “La La Land.” I wish, however, he would have told a better story. If Mia’s character is truly singing the truth, then there is not only one choice: love or dreams.
And that, I suppose, is why I ended up hating “La La Land.” The visionary Chazelle moved me to transcendence believing in the fools who dream, yet, ultimately, he was not able to dream of something larger. Wouldn’t the largest, grandest dream of all be capable of something more noble? In my mind, if Mia and Sebastian would have chosen to embrace the love so clearly portrayed in the film, they could have each pursued their dreams — just differently. Perhaps they would not be able to do so with the same obsessive abandon, and perhaps there would be sacrifices along the way. But they would have learned something much better than the satisfaction of attaining goals — the true nature of love has very little to do with getting exactly what you want.
In the end, “La La Land” couldn’t dream big enough because it did not understand that the true nature of love is not simply the pursuit of what I want.
Love is, instead, about mutual sacrifice.
Here’s hoping Chazelle discovers that along the way.
Even though I hated the ending, you should see “La La Land” anyway. It is gloriously unlike any film I’ve ever seen.
