I watch just enough movies. I go to the theater three or four times during the year, stream a handful at home and then binge on the contenders a week before The Oscars. This year, for the first time, I documented my thoughts on most of those movies.
In January, some friends labeled a Google Sheet “Oscarama” and we each graded the Best Picture nominees, plus three wild cards: The Lobster, Nocturnal Animals and Sing Street. Here’s my tiered ranking:
Marry Me! (5/5): La La Land, Arrival, The Lobster
Just Short of a Masterpiece (4.5/5): Moonlight, Manchester By The Sea, Sing Street
Rent It (4/5): Lion, Hell or High Water
Major Flaws but Captivating (3/5): Nocturnal Animals
Check Please (2/5): Hidden Figures, Fences, Hacksaw Ridge
Thus far, the only film to receive unanimous 5’s from our group is Arrival. It has everything you want from a sci-fi thriller: incredible visuals, brainy storytelling, solid (if understated) performances, graduated suspense and a bold score (by the surging Johan Johannsson). I found it deeply moving and whip-smart, often teetering on the edge of a “Wait, what?” necessary rewind.
Arrival has everything but a real shot at winning Best Picture. Why? Genre films, along with comedies, just don’t take home the big prize. For the Academy, a 10/10 for a science fiction thriller still gets a lower score than traditional dramas with a higher perceived degree of difficulty. When Adele asked, “What more does Beyonce have to do?” the answer is the same for Academy Award nominees like Arrival.
The Lobster is dark, hilarious and constantly surprising. I’d recommend it, along with Other People, Sing Street and Don’t Think Twice, before most of the Best Picture nominees.
Alas, this leaves my final top-tier film, La La Land, as the lone shot of winning Best Picture. Look: I’ll be happy if Moonlight wins, and I’ll ugly cry to celebrate a Manchester By The Sea victory. But if I had a vote, I’d pick the musical. My case:
La La Land was a risk
Here’s all the ways this movie shouldn’t work:
- La La Land is a terrible movie title, destined for ridicule.
- It’s a live-action musical written specifically for the screen, not adapted from a previously successful stage version. This is immensely rare.
- Its leads are not triple-threat Broadway performers. Ryan Gosling learned piano in three months and is far from an expressive, natural dancer. Emma Stone makes Kristen Bell sound like Celine Dion.
- The 32-year old director Damien Chazelle has just two previous directing credits to his name.
And yet, all these risks pay off beautifully. Chazelle is a technical painter working with crude, starter-set instruments, and his imperfections help illustrate characters who are struggling and are finding their voice. Stone sings like someone who has to work really, really hard to get a role. Likewise, nothing about this film comes across as easy.
Great movies can also be fun
Last year, Mad Max: Fury Road was the most divisive Best Picture candidate: sure it was just a long car chase, but the telling of that story was a visually and sonically stunning masterpiece. That film didn’t seek out to be a lightning rod for social change or challenge us to rethink anything outside of the limitations of filmmaking.
It seems to me many of the same people who pulled for Fury Road, and this year’s Deadpool (yuck), put down La La Land for roughly the same film-for-film’s-sake objection. I disagree with the trendy notion that art should overtly say something about our current social climate. I’m glad we had Best Nominees this year that platformed immigration, civil rights, depression and global inclusion. At the same time, I also need an escape from the daily horrific news across my Twitter feed and La La Land provides that jolt of optimism.
Big budget choreography is an endangered species
The choreography of the opening scene made me sit up in my seat, and not just in awe of the rare practical-effect spectacle. These grand shots are increasingly computer generated, and the budget for this extravagance could soon fade. As more and more A-list directors like Martin Scorsese and Barry Jenkins commit to films for Netflix, I wonder if the move to alternative platforms makes the large-scale numbers in La La Land a thing of cinema’s past.
Artistic integrity vs evolution
One of the major conflicts in this film is Sebastian’s dilemma of selling out in a nu-jazz band with Keith (John Legend). What I love about this plot point is that Chazelle challenges the viewer on this debate through Keith’s objectively cool band. John Legend is already super rootable and the music of Keith’s band sounds like a lot of music on the radio today. The performance reminds me of Bruno Mars – a cool, talented hologram created in a lab. The music is good, but we know absolutely nothing of the person making it.
Contrary to the direction of this band, Sebastian wants to preserve the personality and soul elements of traditional jazz. It so clearly pains him to play jazz that is easy to access and predictable. Keith argues that jazz has also always been about evolving; even note-to-note, it’s a genre that does seem to constantly reinvent itself. By this justification, Keith is less so an antagonist than is his music. There’s no real right answer to maintaining the integrity of jazz, and Chazelle deserves credit for not tipping the debate too far in favor the old school style.
We learn the American Dream is often a self-sacrifice
Chazelle’s previous Oscar nominee Whiplash also led with the premise of art over everything. When the Miles Teller character tells his girlfriend he’s choosing drums over love, your heart is unnerved because as Americans we’re predisposed to follow our dreams. But what’s the real opportunity cost of that dream?
In La La Land, we see success at the cost of love and family. The main characters sacrifice their love to support the others’ dreams. That dream, remember, goes beyond careerism; they are passionate about music, acting, and old Hollywood. When she sees him sacrificing music integrity to be a better partner, she is hurt. And he goes way out of his way to drag her back to acting, even though ultimately it sends her away from him.
It’s love and ambition that drives them to do these things, but it’s a self-sacrificing love. And La La Land is memorable for somehow making that pretty, toe-tapping success absolutely heart crushing.
