Throwback Thursday: Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)

Love can make us do crazy things, as cliche as it sounds. So can divorce.

In the 2011 romantic comedy, Crazy, Stupid, Love, Emily (Julianne Moore) has told her husband, Cal (Steve Carell) that she wants a divorce. Needing a pick-me-up, Cal turns to Jacob (Ryan Gosling) to teach him to meet women at bars. While this is happening, Jacob is trying to romance (or at the very least, get into bed), Hannah (Emma Stone). Hannah is Cal and Emily’s daughter.

If this was not enough, Robbie (Jonah Bobo), Hannah’s little brother has a thing for his teenage babysitter, Jessica (Lio Tipton). Jessica, for her part, has a crush on Cal.

I like this movie. It is one of those rom-coms that manages color outside of the proverbial lines while keeping to genre standards. The cast is terrific and the story is thoroughly entertaining.

Do I recommend it? Yes.

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Throwback Thursday: La La Land (2016)

Movie musicals appear, from afar, to be a thing of the past. While they were popular during the younger years of the baby boom era, audiences seem to have other tastes these days.

The 2016 movie, La La Land, is a modern movie musical set in Los Angeles. Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and Mia (Emma Stone) both have dreams that are not set in their reality. He is a pianist and she is an actress. As they have their meet cute, fall in love, and try to stay together, their careers start to come to fruition. At a certain point, they have to make a decision about their future and whether it is worth fighting for.

I’m not a huge fan of the genre. But I appreciate this film because the filmmakers did a good job of remaining in the present while honoring the classics. This is the third film that these two actors have made together (the other two are Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011) and Gangster Squad (2013).

I thoroughly enjoyed it. Gosling and Stone have become one of those iconic movie couples whose on-screen chemistry works, regardless of genre or narratve. It is a sweet, romantic story that hits all of the right notes and has an ending that feels just right.

Do I recommend it? Yes.