Blah Blah Bland

With all the buzz about LaLa Land, I, of course, had to go see it. What a letdown it was for me. I expected an exciting, interesting, well-acted, show biz experience and got a so-so story with average acting instead.

Ryan Gosling is to be applauded for learning to play the piano for his character, but he’s so laidback that he’s almost asleep at the wheel. Emma Stone learned how to dance for her character, and it is obvious that she’s not really a dancer. The story is supposed to be an exciting give-and-take between the two main characters, but it just doesn’t make it to that level. There are moments that are sweet, but mostly the conflict just didn’t come across as conflict to me.

This is the second movie in a row for which I had high expectations based on the buzz (Manchester by the Bay is the other one) and was let down with a loud thump. A movie I did enjoy is Jackie, which is the story of the days from JFK’s assassination to his burial. It is well-acted, interesting, and thoughtful, so at least I know there are movies out there that I do enjoy!

UPDATING: My friend went back and saw La-La Land a second time, and she said it's so much better the second time around. She found the story more engaging and the acting better. She was also more receptive to the main actors learning the crafts (dancing, piano playing) they portrayed in the film. I'll take her word for it, but I'm not going to see the film again just to get a better feeling about it.