It’s been said before but it’s worth repeating: they don’t make movies like La La Land anymore. La La Land may technically be a modern musical, but it has more similarities to Hollywood’s golden age films like Singing In The Rain and On The Town more than gaudy recent efforts like Les Mis or Moulin Rouge!. While La La Land is truly extravagant in every aspect of its presentation, it never loses itself to its own direction and style instead rooting itself in the warmth of its two leads Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone.

The story is a familiar one when we are introduced to Mia, a young woman who moves to LA in search of fame amongst the already packed world of Hollywood. It doesn’t take her long until she runs into Sebastian, a jazz pianist who dreams of starting his own nightclub but is deterred by the seemingly complete disinterest in classical jazz expressed by the public. Surprise, surprise, they eventually get together and attempt to balance a relationship on their own individual dreams.

This film is a love letter to the unbridled ardour of young love: we watch as Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling dance and sing their way across beautifully extravagant set piece after beautifully extravagant set piece while acting as if they are the only two people in the entire world. It is also an exoneration of sorts to act in a completely selfish manner to achieve one’s  goals. This is a recurring theme in the films of director Damien Chazelle, whose defining belief is that a dream is by nature a selfish act, but also just might be the most important thing to live for.

Chazelle’s third feature film could easily feel like a life time achievement for any other director working today. The simple fact that he is only 31 and has created such a beautifully honest movie that is at once achingly nostalgic for times gone by while pioneering in its ambition is testament to the man’s credit, and a sign that he may very well be one of the greatest directors in the business today.