La La Land (2016)—Go After Your Dream
+Guest Posts: Movie Wisdom By Guest Writer Rufat Rassulov—Issue #2
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The Movie:
La La Land (2016) is a fantasy written and directed by Damien Chazelle about Mia Dolan (Emma Stone), an actress, and Sebastian “Seb” Wilder (Ryan Gosling), a jazz pianist, who doggedly pursue their dreams in a competitive but magical Los Angeles while falling in love with each other.
Life Lesson: Go after your dream, even if it seems foolish.
Mia: What do we do?
Seb: I don’t think we can do anything, ’cause when you get this…
Mia: If I get this.
Seb: When you get this, you gotta give it everything you got. Everything. It’s your dream.
Mia: What are you going to do?
Seb: I’m going to follow my own plan, you know? Stay here and get my own thing goin’.
Guest Writer:
Guest writer Rufat Rassulov created a mindfulness newsletter: That’s Philosophical
La La Land (2016) is one of those few movies that left me in tears. At first sight, people may think that this is a lighthearted musical with bits of comedy. But if you look deeper, there is a serious issue that is being talked about throughout the movie. The movie’s name reflects how people often get so caught up in their imaginary worlds, that they are then knocked hard by reality. This is exactly what happens when Mia and Sebastian believe that they have finally reached their dreams. They have no idea what’s coming next.
As the beautiful song “City of Stars” plays, we see how the characters are excited to be moving towards their goals. This scene manages to show the contrast between a romanticized Hollywood and reality. Eventually we learn that Sebastian doesn’t enjoy playing the modern music everybody wants, but the jazz he has a true passion for. He struggles between living what others think the dream looks like vs living his own dream.
And as we get closer to the end, we see how the “city of stars everybody wants” separates the two. They both choose their careers over their relationship; they both genuinely want the other to succeed. But they had to sacrifice each other in order to achieve their ambitions, and both end up feeling like their dreams are incomplete without one another. This dilemma is the main theme of the movie. Will achieving your dream be enough? What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve it?
La La Land shows how ambitions become reality, but it doesn’t always mean that it is a reality that the dreamer wanted—and that can be heartbreaking.
I have to give credit to all the songs in the movie as well. La La Land made me fall in love with the sound of the piano, and I even started learning to play songs from the movie. These songs aren’t just background music; they move the plot along and highlight the themes of the movie. Here is a sampling of the powerful lyrics:
She told me: “A bit of madness is key to give us new colors to see.
Who knows where it will lead us? And that's why they need us!”
So bring on the rebels, the ripples from pebbles, the painters, and poets, and plays.
And here's to the fools who dream, crazy as they may seem.
Here's to the hearts that break.
Here's to the mess we make.
La La Land has a different meaning for every person. I stumbled across a lot of different opinions on what the movie is about. But it’s beautiful that everyone finds something for themselves. I really recommend the movie—a big thank you to Damien Chazelle for creating this masterpiece!
moviewise Review:
La La Land (2016) is a fantasy. It’s a beautiful lie. But if the real world is harsh and indifferent, at best, to the plight of the dreamers, the believers, and the naive who think they’re special when they’re not, and those who think they’ll beat the odds, although they won’t—then that’s all the more reason to enter this candy-colored dream world, where a simple girl becomes a famous, glamorous, movie star complete with a loving family, and where an earnest boy can hold on to his dignity, independence, and integrity to reach all his professional goals. This suspension of reality, this joy in the incredible and improbable success of personable and relatable characters is why we go to the movies. It’s why we immerse ourselves in the dreamscape of the cinema.
But La La Land holds back from delivering a true Hollywood happy ending. As if to ease us back into the mundane struggles that confront us—without the cinemascope romance, or the choreographed soundtrack, or the magical, lucky encounters—the movie ends with the melancholy lament of regret by showing us a glimpse into an alternate, happier ending to the one we are given. But this alternate ending was just a daydream, only possible if everything had been perfect and every choice or decision made by the characters had been the right one. This, of course, is impossible—even in a fantasy movie.
So we are left with only this: your dreams may not work out exactly as you expect, but while you hold on to them, and truly work to achieve them, you are living a life full of wonder and hope. What a beautiful place to be, as fantastic and romantic as any movie. What a great way to shield and protect yourself from a cruel and uncaring world. So, go on: go after your dream, even if it seems foolish—because sometimes dreams do come true, and even if they don’t completely, what you do achieve because you went after your dream will still be something wonderful and unique. Not a bad story for a running time of 2 hours and 8 minutes.
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Incredible review on one of the best movies ever made! Thank you for featuring me!!