Oscars: Every Best Picture Nominee Of The 2010s - Ranked Worst To Best

2. La La Land

La La Land
Summit Entertainment

It’s easy to look at La La Land and write it off as sentimental, romanticised hogwash. It’s about two beautiful people pursuing their exceptional talents and falling in love and singing and dancing against an idealised, cinemascope version of LA.

But what’s wrong with that? La La Land is a fantasy land, but its focus is inherently human, and the push and pull between love and career that both Seb and Mia have to tangle with is anything other than the kind of Hollywood happy ending the film visually sends up.

Justin Horowitz’s music is obviously the MVP here though, underlining the highs and lows Mia and Seb’s relationship, before blowing everything out the water during an extended, heartbreaking dream sequence at the end. It could probably do without the weird, anti-pop streak, but La La Land has everyone involved working at their A-game, and will ultimately be remembered as giving Hollywood not only one of the best musicals of all time, but an on-screen romance for the ages.

JB

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