On 'La La Land'
'La La Land' is a movie that, for all intents and purposes, should really work for me, as a fan of musicals, jazz and old Hollywood. And it did to some extent - I adore the soundtrack, and I thought that Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling gave great performances, the cinematography was beautiful and the unexpected ending was a welcome take on a traditional love story.
But even with all of this, I couldn't help feeling slightly underwhelmed. This feeling was to be expected, due to the intense hype and never-ending praise this movie has received from the Internet and its many critics, who describe it as a 'magical love letter to the golden age of Hollywood.' But that's just the problem.
One of my first thoughts after seeing this movie was that it was basically a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers film in colour, with a better script and better actors (but lacking in the tap dance in rollerskates department). It had the same blossoming romance, music and choreography (which the Astaire and Rogers films did a lot better). The problem is, this movie seems to take a little too much inspiration from its predecessors.
Like the Hollywood films of old, La La Land has been criticised for a lack of representation and diversity, and while this might have worked for the Astaire and Rogers films of the 1930's, a film set in 'modern day' LA, a place where non- Hispanic white people are becoming the minority, Latinx people account for 47% of the population, Asians make up 11% and African Americans make up 10% (according to the 2010 US Census), should include a lot more diversity.
The films opening number ' Another Day of Sun' seems to acknowledge this , as the first character the audience meets is Indian-American dancer Reshma Gajjar (voiced by Angela Parrish), and the scene continues to show people of colour singing their hopes and dreams into the universe. However, this seems to be the films diversity quota filled, as immediately the focus is put on Stone and Gosling's characters, and POC only show up to act as background for our main characters - take the scene in the jazz club in which Mia and Sebastian are placed in the spotlight, (he plays the piano and she dances) whilst the black people look on in amazement from the background. It's in this scene in the jazz club that John Legend's character Keith is introduced. And although Legend - a black man,has the films main supporting role, it still is only a supporting role, and there isn't a valid reason why Legend - or any other black/ POC actors couldn't have replaced Stone or Gosling, as there is no critical plot point that requires the films protagonists to be a white, heterosexual couple, especially in a city like LA, in which ethnic minorities and the LGBTQ+ community make up a large percentage of the population.
There's also the issue of Gosling's character, Sebastian, who is on a quest to save the dying art form of Jazz music. Many perceive this to be a whitewashing of Jazz as a genre, and to some extent I would agree. It is widely acknowledged that Jazz is an art form that has its roots in Black culture and communities and yes, while there is nothing inherently wrong with a white man playing and enjoying Jazz music, there is something to be questioned in the way the movie presents Gosling as the 'true musician' who is the self proclaimed saviour of jazz, while Legend is a sell out who cheapens the art form to make money.
Also, the only 'jazz' we see Sebastian consistently play is this, while Keith performs this, to much wider acclaim. (again, the soundtrack to this movie is 10/10)
This isn't to say 'La La Land' is an inherently bad film, and it was certainly a worthy contender for the awards season. And of course there are those who say that this movie (and others like it) are a form of escapism, and aren't required to be reflective of real life. But, the fact that this fantasy dream world is a place where POC cease to exist after one musical number, LGBTQ + people don't exist at all and black people either exist to aid the white man on his quest or are simply pushed to the background, raises the question of what true diversity in film is, and how we as consumers have a responsibility to make it better.
One of my first thoughts after seeing this movie was that it was basically a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers film in colour, with a better script and better actors (but lacking in the tap dance in rollerskates department). It had the same blossoming romance, music and choreography (which the Astaire and Rogers films did a lot better). The problem is, this movie seems to take a little too much inspiration from its predecessors.
Like the Hollywood films of old, La La Land has been criticised for a lack of representation and diversity, and while this might have worked for the Astaire and Rogers films of the 1930's, a film set in 'modern day' LA, a place where non- Hispanic white people are becoming the minority, Latinx people account for 47% of the population, Asians make up 11% and African Americans make up 10% (according to the 2010 US Census), should include a lot more diversity.
The films opening number ' Another Day of Sun' seems to acknowledge this , as the first character the audience meets is Indian-American dancer Reshma Gajjar (voiced by Angela Parrish), and the scene continues to show people of colour singing their hopes and dreams into the universe. However, this seems to be the films diversity quota filled, as immediately the focus is put on Stone and Gosling's characters, and POC only show up to act as background for our main characters - take the scene in the jazz club in which Mia and Sebastian are placed in the spotlight, (he plays the piano and she dances) whilst the black people look on in amazement from the background. It's in this scene in the jazz club that John Legend's character Keith is introduced. And although Legend - a black man,has the films main supporting role, it still is only a supporting role, and there isn't a valid reason why Legend - or any other black/ POC actors couldn't have replaced Stone or Gosling, as there is no critical plot point that requires the films protagonists to be a white, heterosexual couple, especially in a city like LA, in which ethnic minorities and the LGBTQ+ community make up a large percentage of the population.
There's also the issue of Gosling's character, Sebastian, who is on a quest to save the dying art form of Jazz music. Many perceive this to be a whitewashing of Jazz as a genre, and to some extent I would agree. It is widely acknowledged that Jazz is an art form that has its roots in Black culture and communities and yes, while there is nothing inherently wrong with a white man playing and enjoying Jazz music, there is something to be questioned in the way the movie presents Gosling as the 'true musician' who is the self proclaimed saviour of jazz, while Legend is a sell out who cheapens the art form to make money.
Also, the only 'jazz' we see Sebastian consistently play is this, while Keith performs this, to much wider acclaim. (again, the soundtrack to this movie is 10/10)
This isn't to say 'La La Land' is an inherently bad film, and it was certainly a worthy contender for the awards season. And of course there are those who say that this movie (and others like it) are a form of escapism, and aren't required to be reflective of real life. But, the fact that this fantasy dream world is a place where POC cease to exist after one musical number, LGBTQ + people don't exist at all and black people either exist to aid the white man on his quest or are simply pushed to the background, raises the question of what true diversity in film is, and how we as consumers have a responsibility to make it better.
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