Movie Review: La La Land

Please note: This review was written weeks ago and originally published in my university's newspaper. 

When Damien Chazelle's "La La Land" was first released in 2016, it seemed as if there was positive buzz surrounding it on all sides. I was mad at myself for waiting this long to watch it, because it sounded like exactly the kind of movie I would give my heart to. Unfortunately, I probably could have waited another year or ten to watch it and not be missing much.

This musical romance follows a struggling actress and a bitter pianist as they fall in love and try to figure out what they are doing with their lives. "La La Land" is a nod to Old Hollywood and smooth jazz in the twenty-first century, which others may have found charming but did not sit well with me. The tone and the time period did not seem cohesive to me. Maybe it's because I feel no particular connection to jazz or classic Hollywood, but the nostalgia the movie seemed to be reaching for never quite hit its mark where I'm concerned. Instead, I felt almost jerked around as the movie flip-flopped from the modern day to a thirties vibe.

I also felt the musical numbers, overall, to be jarring. I adore musicals and I am completely on board with the singing-out-of-nowhere trope, but in "La La Land," half of the numbers didn't seem to have a good transition and weren't entirely interesting. They were well done in terms of the vocals and the music itself, but they were simple and I found myself very disengaged anytime the characters began to sing.

Now, the characters themselves were fairly well-developed and interesting. I was certainly hoping for their success as I watched. However, I wouldn't describe them as especially memorable or unique. In fact, my biggest critique of this entire film is that it seems to be lacking the thing that makes it different and memorable. Maybe the musical numbers are supposed to serve that purpose, but I didn't feel it. The story, the characters, and even the romance—it was all stale and done many a times before. Admittedly, though, I am fond of the ending.

While I am sure many people disagree with me (proven by the number of awards this film won), "La La Land" had some ups and downs but was mostly bland for me. I do not necessarily regret watching it, but I'm not exactly glad I watched it either.

My rating: 

3/5

Movie Review: Kingsman: The Golden Circle

Please note: This review was written several months ago and originally published in my university's newspaper.

Sequels are precarious. Most fans are looking for a sequel that develops its own, special charm while also maintaining the original film's appeal. Some fans are simply seeking another round of entertainment. When it comes to Matthew Vaughn's "Kingsman: The Golden Circle," I was one of the latter fans. I imagine anyone expecting something fresh from this sequel will be disappointed, as it contains gobs of similarities to its predecessor. Probably too many similarities. However, "The Golden Circle" is still a wildly entertaining film and, personally, that's all I was really looking for.

"The Golden Circle" is an action/comedy that throws us into the happenings of a secret UK spy agency called Kingsman. Once again, we're following Eggsy, a young, formerly-rough-around-the-edges member of Kingsman. Everything seems to be golden for him: he has saved the world, become a hotshot spy, and started dating a Swedish princess. Too bad an isolated, sadistic drug lord named Poppy has other plans for him. She gathers intel on Kingsman and does everything she can to destroy the organization, forcing Eggsy to travel to the U.S. and join forces with an agency called Statesman to defeat Poppy.

There are a handful of plot decisions that I don't agree with. Without giving anything away, there is an event in the beginning that feels like a cheap way to get the plot rolling. There are also a few major conflicts throughout that could have easily been avoided with any sort of logic or communication. The major issue, though, is that the villain plotline is practically identical to that of the first movie: a wealthy, eccentric mogul of some sort has created a large-scale hostage situation. While I don't mind most of the similarities and rehashing done throughout this film, this one does bother me. I want to see the spies facing obstacles they've never quite encountered before. Instead, they've already conquered a situation just like this one, so it's hard to feel impressed.

Honestly, though, I'm willing to overlook those grievances, because this movie is so much fun. It is absurd and cartoonish while also being intense and interesting. There are predictable moments, but for the most part (especially during the action scenes) I was never entirely sure what to expect next from this film. "The Golden Circle" never fails to take dramatic turns I could never imagine, and that's what makes this film so engaging.

What I enjoyed most about this film was the characterization and the emotional aspect. While I still feel like we could delve deeper into these characters, I felt like we got to know most of them much better than we did in the first movie. We got to know what drives some of the characters. We got to see weaknesses. We got to see their strength. We dug deeper and it made them stand out to me much more.

Though it isn't a perfect sequel, "Kingsman: The Golden Circle" is a delightful, engrossing experience, and left me feeling nothing but content when I left the theater.

My rating:

4/5

Spring Favorites

Happy June, y'all! Obviously I didn't keep y'all very updated during the spring semester, so I figured I'd do a quick rundown of all my favorite things I stumbled upon over the past few months!

The (original) Selection trilogy by Kiera Cass - Admittedly, I didn't read very many novels during the semester, but I got the box set for my birthday and devoured these! So many people have said that these are basically their guilty pleasure reads, but I don't feel any shame. These were fun and I really enjoyed them!

Fun fact: This past semester I started writing movie reviews for my university's official newspaper (I even won a few awards from competitions). That said, I watched a lot more movies during the semester than usual, because I had to review one every week. These are just a few of my favorites!

Sing Street - At its core, "Sing Street" is a movie about a young boy in 1980's Dublin who starts a band to impress a girl. It's a premise done time and time again—but never like this. This film is an homage to the eighties and to music and to growing up.

The Impossible - "The Impossible" is the kind of movie that is difficult to talk about because I don't want to give anything away—I just want people to experience it! Quite frankly, I thought this movie would be boring. I did not expect the suspense, the honesty, and the emotion. There was not a single second of this movie when I was unengaged. I sincerely believe that anyone who takes the time to watch this movie will be affected by it.

A Dog's Purpose - While it's admittedly strange to go on a journey of self-discovery with a dog, Halstrom manages to make it poignant and insightful. I think it would be quite challenging not to be charmed by this movie—trust me, I tried. If, for whatever reason, you need a good cry, this is probably the film you want to turn to. I experienced a lot of emotions throughout, but I left the theater feeling genuinely joyful and satisfied.

The Magicians - My dudes...this show is dark and magical and fracklin intense! If you like AHS you'll probably love this! Great characters, intriguing setting and worldbuilding. Ugh. I'm obsessed.

Stranger Things - I was a lil late to the party. Everybody has seen this already, I know. And if you haven't--DO IT. I was tentative, but I adored the first season!

Girlboss - I was actually really surprised by this one! I just clicked on it without knowing what it was about and it hooked me in! It was really funny and interesting, and I look forward to seeing where the series goes.

My Polaroid camera - My sister got me this for Christmas, along with a cute little case and other fixins' to go along with it. I really love it! It's always fun to take these adorable photos with my friends. And trust me, polaroid pictures can make literally anyone look heckin flawless.

My mermaid blanket - My sister got me this for my birthday haha! It' so adorable and everyone is always jealous of me when they find out I have one because who wouldn't want to sit on their couch and just be a majestic mermaid?

My family photo - Okay, so my friend photoshopped this picture and framed it for my birthday, and it's one of my favorite presents of all time!! That's me and Tyler Joseph and MY CAT!!! Like, I'm obsessed. I am proudly displaying this on the shelf by my bed right meow.