Following the Oscar blooper on Monday, I have been seeing some
Moonlight-vs-La La Land discussions that are based on very simplistic
binaries. For instance, the idea that the former represents “good
content” while the latter is “only craft” - as if it is possible to
separate those two things in a really good film. Or that Moonlight is
“about something important” while La La Land is “escapist candy”.
Sigh. There we go again, running down escapism, which is one of the most important things in the human experience. (Also: running down candy?! How low can you stoop? The big Toblerone bar in my fridge is currently about the only thing that makes me feel it might be worth staying alive. Not joking.) But more than that, I think most statements in most contexts that go “this is only escapism” are inherently a bit short-sighted. La La Land is about some *overtly* Important things too: it is about art that is in danger of being forgotten, marginalised or made anodyne, about “painters and poets” being sidelined in a jingoistic world that scoffs at culture. It is also as much about self-realisation, about struggling with who you are and what you might become - and what will be gained or lost along the way - as Moonlight is. The tone and approach of the two films is of course very different, but that goes without saying.
Sigh. There we go again, running down escapism, which is one of the most important things in the human experience. (Also: running down candy?! How low can you stoop? The big Toblerone bar in my fridge is currently about the only thing that makes me feel it might be worth staying alive. Not joking.) But more than that, I think most statements in most contexts that go “this is only escapism” are inherently a bit short-sighted. La La Land is about some *overtly* Important things too: it is about art that is in danger of being forgotten, marginalised or made anodyne, about “painters and poets” being sidelined in a jingoistic world that scoffs at culture. It is also as much about self-realisation, about struggling with who you are and what you might become - and what will be gained or lost along the way - as Moonlight is. The tone and approach of the two films is of course very different, but that goes without saying.
To clarify: I have no issue with anyone feeling La La Land was
overrated/overhyped because the execution left something to be desired
(personally I wasn’t very taken by the film’s opening 10-15 minutes, it
picked up for me after that). But if the criticism is based on a
preconception that a good-looking, shiny, partly escapist song-and-dance
film with two white protagonists cannot also be meaningful and
provocative, well, that’s where I quickly exit the discussion!
P.S. and yes, I loved Moonlight too. Was enormously moved by it despite the fact that the viewing experience was a less than ideal one for 3-4 different reasons (one of them being the stupidity of the Indian censor board).
(Other related thoughts/conversations have come out of a Facebook comments thread where I put this up, but I'm not adding those to this post)
P.P.S. on a related note, I just reread this piece by Roger Ebert about one of my favourite films, Tarsem Singh’s The Cell (a film that is much more over-the-top fantasist/escapist than La La Land could ever be). It was playing on TV yesterday, and watching it after years, I was reminded of how visually stunning it was while also being (for me at least) a powerful emotional experience, finding a measure of grace and catharsis in some very dark places. (Back in 2000, I never thought I would say that about a film with Jennifer Lopez in the lead. But it’s always nice to be surprised by yourself.) A big head-nod to Ebert’s observation that "For all of its visual pyrotechnics, it's also a story where we care about the characters; there's a lot at stake at the end, and we're involved."
P.S. and yes, I loved Moonlight too. Was enormously moved by it despite the fact that the viewing experience was a less than ideal one for 3-4 different reasons (one of them being the stupidity of the Indian censor board).
(Other related thoughts/conversations have come out of a Facebook comments thread where I put this up, but I'm not adding those to this post)
P.P.S. on a related note, I just reread this piece by Roger Ebert about one of my favourite films, Tarsem Singh’s The Cell (a film that is much more over-the-top fantasist/escapist than La La Land could ever be). It was playing on TV yesterday, and watching it after years, I was reminded of how visually stunning it was while also being (for me at least) a powerful emotional experience, finding a measure of grace and catharsis in some very dark places. (Back in 2000, I never thought I would say that about a film with Jennifer Lopez in the lead. But it’s always nice to be surprised by yourself.) A big head-nod to Ebert’s observation that "For all of its visual pyrotechnics, it's also a story where we care about the characters; there's a lot at stake at the end, and we're involved."
On the topic of escapist candy not being worth an Oscar - I found this very interesting :
ReplyDeletehttps://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2017/02/27/one-unexpected-outcome-of-the-oscars-best-picture-blunder-vindication-for-marisa-tomei/
I loved Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny - she was like a breath of fresh air in a bunch of stuffy/serious performances that competed for the Oscar - and I remember responding with some surprise and pleasure that the powers-that-be felt the same. I had no idea that people had actually whispered that her name had been called out by mistake. If I were passing by a TV with a rerun of MCV and her scenes in it, I would definitely stop to watch - I doubt I would do the same for many of the movies that the other candidates for the award acted in.
Radhika: oh yes. I remember all the bemusement when those nominations were announced - and having seen none of the supporting actress performances yet, but being a bit of a Redgrave-Plowright snob myself, I think I bought the narrative that Tomei was nominated just because they had to have a token young American. When I finally did see her performance, I had no doubt about its worthiness. (Experienced something similar with Mira Sorvino and Mighty Aphrodite.)
DeleteHi Jai:
ReplyDeleteI am making a comment unrelated to your review. Reading some of the subtext, as well as other posts, I gather that some of your personal battles are, well, weighing you down. From a random stranger: hang in there. I don't know if *it* will get better, but you do come across as kind, honest and sensitive, and I'd like to send some good wishes your way.
Cheers.
Thanks a lot, Arun. That Toblerone comment was just a little facetious, but yes, things have been quite bad on the personal front for a while now, and it gets hard to stay sane. (I have never been a "stay optimistic" sort anyway, even in good times, so that isn't a big issue.)
DeleteGood wishes from me too Jai. I have long enjoyed your articles and look upon you as an ideal in terms of film journalism and your general views. Recently my mother passed away from cancer which crept upon her silently and I missed all the signs that she was withering away. So I can totally understand the article you had written about your Mum. Also my last conversation with her at home was a fight with her which will haunt me forever. It's great that you and your Mum have a great relationship and I wish you all the strength to cope with whatever is on the way.
DeleteI believe Moonlight is being considered all the more relevant because of what is happening in US or rather, what is finally being highlighted as happening in US (it was always there, but it is only recently that the discrimination has gotten so much spotlight). It is not as if "La la Land" was less deserving, but really giving Moonlight the Oscar was sort of sending out a message.
ReplyDeleteSorry if I sound too simplistic or come across as stating the obvious.
FWIW I agree about escapist cinema getting the short shrift. But in this case, the Moonlight vs La la Land thing underlines something slightly different.
Yes, I get that, and there are good reasons to feel glad about Moonlight getting the award (among them that it is such an unusual best picture Oscar winner - a friend and I were looking at the full list of winners and discussing this - that it might just herald the awards becoming more interesting and wide-ranging in future). I do feel though that while Moonlight is a hot-button film in a very direct way, La La Land also tangentially addresses a subject that is of great relevance in today's times, in the US and around the world: the undermining of art and culture, the "soft" topics, in favour of hardline politics. One reason why there is something so appropriate about Emma Stone's tremulous, vulnerable voice singing "the painters and poets and plays".
DeleteFor the lovers of 'serious cinema', I imagine a fantasy. They should be put in a theatre and made to watch all Aamir Khan's message oriented movies (the way the lead of A Clockwork Orange was made to watch). Or, they should be made to listen to that song from TZP - dekho inhe aus ki boondein (pretty much the way a character in ACO was made to listen Beethoven). If they get affected, they should then be made to watch any Kadar Khan movie :)
ReplyDelete