Review: Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone Aswirl in Tra La La Land
來(lái)源:https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/08/movies/la-la-land-review-ryan-gosling-emma-stone.html
By?A.?O.?SCOTT
DEC. 8, 2016
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[1]It?starts?with?a?traffic?jam/d??m/,?a?sweltering/'sw?lt?r??/ribbon/‘r?b?n/of?frustration?on?a?Los?Angeles?freeway.?All?of?a?sudden,?a?melody?emerges/?'m?d?/from?the?squalling/skw?l/of?horns/h?:n/and?the?cacophony/k?’kɑf?ni/of?competing radiostations,?the?commuters/k?'mj?t?/leap?from their?cars,?and?a?big,?brazenly/'breiz?nli/sincere/s?n's?r/movie-musical?song-and-dance?number?is?underway.
jam/d??m/n. 果醬栓始；擁擠；困境惯雳；扣籃
sweltering/'sw?lt?r??/adj. 悶熱的滴须；熱得難受的
ribbon/‘r?b?n/n. 帶窟绷；緞帶闸婴；（勛章等的）綬帶饲握；帶狀物；勛表
emerges/?'m?d?/vi. 浮現(xiàn)；擺脫娃殖；暴露
squalling/skw?l/n. 暴風(fēng)值戳；麻煩；高聲哭喊炉爆；尖叫
horns/h?:n/n. 喇叭堕虹；號(hào)；角制品芬首；警報(bào)器（horn的復(fù)數(shù)）
cacophony/k?’kɑf?ni/n. 刺耳的音調(diào)赴捞；不和諧音
commuters/k?’mj?t?/n通勤者
brazenly/'breiz?nli/adv. 厚臉皮地，厚顏無(wú)恥地
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_La_Land_(film)
[2]An?early?verse,?sung?by?a?chipper?young?woman?in?a?yellow?dress,?is?a?kind?of?overture,?hinting?at?the?theme?of?the?bittersweet?fairy?tale?to?follow.?She?recalls?leaving?her?hometown?boyfriend behind?to?pursue?fame?and?fortune?here?in?La?La?Land,?a?quaint?old?nickname?for?Los?Angeles?that?is?also?the?name?of?Damien?Chazelle’s?charming?new?movie.
[3]The?ingénue?in?the?yellow?dress?will?vanish?from?the?story,?which?is?concerned?with?the?entwined?romantic?and?creative?doings?of?an?actress?named?Mia?(who?is?behind?the?wheel?of?a?Prius)?and?ajazz?pianist?named?Sebastian?(who?is?pushing?a?shiny?crimson?beater).?The?kicky?opening?sequence?serves?as?an?audition?piece,?a?mini-“Chorus?Line”?acquainting?us?with?the?crowd?from?which?thesetwo?gorgeous?faces?will?emerge.?Mia’s?face?belongs?to?Emma?Stone,?Sebastian’s?to?Ryan?Gosling,?so?you?know?what?I’m?talking?about.
[4]But?even?though?they’re?played?by?movie?stars,?Mia?and?Seb?(as?he’s?sometimes?called)?have?a?long?way?to?go.?They?are?still?swimming?in?a?teeming?pool?of?strivers?and?seekers.?Every?car?from Glendale?to?Santa?Monica?holds?an?aspiring?artist?or?performer?of?some?kind?or?other.?If?they?shared?their?rides,?the?commute?might?be?easier?and?the?smog?less?heavy,?but?of?course?part?of?thepoint?is?that?each?one?makes?the?trip?alone.
[5]That?first?song,?one?of?a?bouquet?of?compositions?written?for?the?movie?by?Justin?Hurwitz,?with?lyrics?by?Benj?Pasek?and?Justin?Paul,?is?called?“Another?Day?of?Sun,”?and?it?is?the?movie’s?way?ofauditioning?for?the?audience,?testing?our?tolerance?for?a?bold?blend?of?nostalgia?and?novelty.?Can?a?generation?raised?on?“Glee”?and?the?“High?School?Musical”?franchise?and?besotted?bynewfangled?stage?musicals?like?“Book?of?Mormon”?and?“Hamilton”?find?room?in?its?heart?for?a?movie?that?unabashedly?evokes?“The?Young?Girls?of?Rochefort”?and?“An?American?in?Paris”?
[6]Why?not??Mr.?Chazelle,?whose?previous?features?(“Guy?and?Madeline?on?a?Park?Bench”?and?“Whiplash”)?were?full?of?music?and?brash,?youthful?energy,?is?a?natural?showman?and?a?cannycraftsman.?He?wears?his?influences?on?his?sleeve,?but?he?wears?them?lightly.?For?all?its?echoes?and?allusions, “La?La?Land”?is?too?lively?and?too?earnest?for?mere?pastiche.?It?doesn’t?so?much?lookback?longingly?at?past?masters?like?Vincente?Minnelli,?Nicholas?Ray,?Stanley?Donen?and?Jacques?Demy?(to?name?a?few)?as?tap?into?their?mojo,?insisting?on?their?modernity?and?its?own?classicism?inthe?same?gesture.
[7]Mia?and?Seb?are?throwbacks?—?if?not?quite?to?Ginger?and?Fred?then?surely?to?Judy?Garland?and?Mickey?Rooney?or?Cyd?Charisse?and?Gene?Kelly?—?but?they?are?also?citizens?of?the?present.?Theyare?better?at?acting?than?the?other?stuff,?able?to?express?emotion?in?nonmusical?scenes?with?candor?and?conviction,?but?a?little?stiff-limbed?and?wobbly-voiced?when?the?moment?arrives?for?hoofingand?chirping.?In?this,?they’re?pretty?much?the?opposite?of?those?earlier?performers,?who?were?vaudevillian?troupers?before?they?were?thespians.
[8]Seb’s?fussy?jazzman?antiquarianism?is,?in?any?case,?an?entirely?plausible?millennial?affectation.?His?vintage?car?has?a?cassette?deck?in?the?dashboard,?and?he?lives?in?a?shabby?apartment?amid?stacksof?vinyl?records?and?old?concert?posters.?His?prized?possession?is?a?piano?stool?that?supposedly?once?belonged?to?Hoagy?Carmichael,?and?he’s?upset?when?his?unsentimental?sister?(the?great,?all-too-briefly?seen?Rosemarie?DeWitt)?sits?on?it.
[9]In?his?approach?to?work,?Seb?is?a?proud?purist,?perpetually?oppressed?and?affronted?by?the?prospect?of?compromise.?To?pay?the?rent,?he?is?obliged?to?take?what?he?regards?as?demeaning?gigs:?tickling?out?Christmas?carols?and?show?tunes?at?a?restaurant?(the?manager?is?J.?K.?Simmons,?the?fearsome?Oscar-winner?from?“Whiplash”);?doing?’80s?pop?hits?with?a?knowingly?cheesy?cover?band;?touring?with?a?combo?fronted?by?an?old?friend?who?has?made?it?big.
[10]That?friend,?Keith,?is?played?by?the?real-life?R&B?star?John?Legend,?whose?affable?participation?presents?an?interesting?challenge?to?Seb’s?dogmatic?traditionalism.?It?seems?doubtful?that?Mr.?Legend?would?have?shown?up?to?perform?music?that?he?thought?was?bad,?and?Keith’s?unapologetic?commercialism?is?less?a?strawman?for?Seb’s?high-mindedness?than?a?plausible?counterargument.?The?difference?between?selling?out?and?breaking?through?is?not?always?clear,?and?“La?La?Land”?is?not?so?hypocritical?as?to?pretend?otherwise.
[11]This?is?especially?true?in?Mia’s?case.?She?works?as?a?barista?at?a?coffee?shop?on?the?Warner?Bros.’?lot,?dashing?off?to?audition?for?small?roles?in?dubious?films?and?television?shows.?But,?of?course,?the?line?between?art?and?junk?is?also?blurry,?partly?because?to?qualify?for?the?junk?you?must?be?absolutely?dedicated?to?your?art.?Which?Mia?is,?in?a?way?that?magnifies?Ms.?Stone’s?extraordinarydiscipline,?poise?and?naturalness.
[12]The?real?tension?in?“La?La?Land”?is?between?ambition?and?love,?and?perhaps?the?most?up-to-date?thing?about?it?is?the?way?it?explores?that?ancient?conflict.?A?cynical?but?not?inaccurate?way?to?putthis?would?be?to?describe?it?as?a?careerist?movie?about?careerism.?But?that?would?be?to?slight?Mr.?Chazelle’s?real?and?uncomfortable?insight,?which?is?that?the?drive?for?professional?success?is,?foryoung?people?at?the?present?time,?both?more?realistic?and?more?romantic?than?the?pursuit?of?boy-meets-girl?happily-ever-after.?Love?is?contingent.?Art?is?commitment.
[13]As?moviegoers,?we?might?prefer?not?to?choose,?and?in?this?case?we?don’t?really?have?to. “La?La?Land”?succeeds?both?as?a?fizzy?fantasy?and?a?hard-headed?fable,?a?romantic?comedy?and?a?showbizmelodrama,?a?work?of?sublime?artifice?and?touching?authenticity.?The?artifice?lies?in?the?gorgeous?colors,?the?suave?camera?movements?and?the?elegant?wide-screen?compositions.?In?the?songs?andchoreography?too,?of?course,?though?it?has?to?be?said?that,?with?one?or?two?exceptions,?these?are?more?competent?than?dazzling.?You’re?more?likely?to?remember?what?you?saw?than?what?you?heard.
[14]The?naturalness?comes?from?the?stars,?and?from?the?filmmaker’s?disarming?infatuation?with?the?place?apotheosized?in?song?as?the?“City?of?Stars.”?Taking?his?place?in?a?long?tradition?of?besottedEasterners,?Mr.?Chazelle?(from?New?Jersey?by?way?of?Harvard)?can’t?stop?looking?up?at?the?palm?trees?silhouetted?against?the?evening?sky.?The?four?chapters?that?track?the?changing?seasons?are?asly?joke?about?the?weather,?which?is?always?perfect.?The?magic?hour?—?that?purple-and-orange?twilight?cherished?by?generations?of?cineastes?—?seems?to?last?for?weeks?on?end.?The?GriffithObservatory?might?as?well?be?heaven?itself.
[15]Like?a?capable?bandleader?or?stage?illusionist,?Mr.?Chazelle?knows?how?to?structure?a?set,?to?slacken?the?pace?at?times?in?order?to?build?toward?a?big?finish.?He?memorably?pushed?“Whiplash”?toa?complex?and?thrilling?musical?climax,?and?he?outdoes?himself?in?the?last?20?minutes?of?“La?La?Land,”?and?outdoes?just?about?every?other?director?of?his?generation,?wrapping?intense?and?delicateemotions?in?sheer,?intoxicating?cinematic?bliss.
[16]The?final?sequence/'sikw?ns/—?one?last?audition/?'d???n/,?followed?by?a?swirl?of?rapturous/'r?pt??r?s/,?heart-tugging/‘t?gi?/music?and?ballet?—?effectively?cashes?the?check?the?rest of?the?movie?has?written.?On?first?viewing,?for?the first?90?minutes?or?so,?you?may?find?your?delight/d?'la?t/shadowed?by?skepticism/'sk?pt?,s?z?m/.?Where?is?this?going??Can?this?guy?pull?it?off??Are?these?kids?going?to?make?it??Should?we?care??By?the?end,?those questions?vanish/'v?n??/under?a?spell?of?enchantment/ ?n?t??ntm?nt/.
audition/?’d???n/n. 聽力郁稍，聽覺赦政；試聽
delight/d?'la?t/n. 高興
skepticism/'sk?pt?,s?z?m/n. 懷疑論；懷疑的態(tài)度
vanish/‘v?n??/vi. 消失耀怜；突然不見恢着；成為零
rapturous/'r?pt??r?s/,adj. 狂喜的；興高采烈的财破；歡天喜地的
enchantment/ ?n?t??ntm?nt/.n. 魅力掰派；魔法；著迷左痢；妖術(shù)
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