Jack Goes Confidential: Tinseltown Turns ‘La La Land’

It may take a little prodding to get your guy to come along to see something called LA LA LAND…

And once you get him into the theater and he sees the opening sequence taking place on LA’s busy ‘405,’ his first thought most likely will be WHAT IN THE HELL AM I DOING HERE?

For the record, those were my initial thoughts as well.

But guess what, once I got into it, the movie won me over—and then some.

And I’m certainly not alone because LA LA LAND just danced away with SEVEN Golden Globe nominations including Best Picture (musical or comedy), Best Actor Ryan Gosling, Best Actress Emma Stone and Best Director Damien Chazelle!

So exactly what IS this picture?

It’s a dazzling musical love letter to Tinseltown.

A fairy tale of sorts drawing from various emotions of real life. A modern take on the classic Hollywood musicals that has aspiring actress Emma Stone drawn to jazz pianist Ryan Gosling.

These two being drawn together by their common desire to do what they love.

But along the way faced with decisions that tear at the fragile fabric of their budding love affair.

It’s really not the story here that makes this film so special. It’s the way director Damien Chazelle pulls it off on the screen. Definitely a welcomed holiday gift to fans of vintage Hollywood.

I wish that I could do a better job in describing this most unusual cinematic delight to you, but I can’t. You will have to discover the finer points for yourself.

LA LA LAND opened last weekend in limited runs on both coasts and went through the roof at the box office.

It premieres this weekend in semi-exclusive engagements in Kansas City where it will make for perfect counter programming to ROGUE ONE.

Lionsgate, the film’s distributor, will then ‘widen out’ the movie by opening it in additional local theaters on Christmas Day.

Gosling and Stone; the dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart—in magical LA LA LAND.

My score—an ‘Oscar bound’: A