Discuss How Important Cinematography Is In Establishing Strong Responses From Spectators To A Key Character in La La Land

Discuss How Important Cinematography is in Establishing Strong Responses From Spectators To A Key Character In La La Land. 

The sequence begins with a still image of a palm tree, and the season being "winter", this juxtaposing image is revealed to be nothing more than a backdrop, which begins to ripple due to the wind, it is five years later and we pan downwards towards a car door opening, in the background we can see a classical blue car, contrasted with this new modern vehicle that has now opened its door to reveal two black heels, we see the winter leaves flowing on the floor and the sun brightly shining, adding to this juxtaposition of weather, Even though the season is winter, the sun and its colours, and the palm tree, illuminate the scene with life, and the illuminator is this woman. The palm tree also has connotations of Los Angeles, Hollywood, which is the home of American film as we know it, and so we, as the spectator, knowing this information, assume that the woman who is revealed is going to be someone of importance in that industry. We track the feet and slowly pan upwards, to the head, her ginger hair hinting at her identity.

Cutting to a door being opened, we focus on the hand of the opener, tracking again upwards to the back of her head at a mid-close up. Again we do not know fully who it is yet, but we are given the idea that they are important due to an offer of free coffee, something Mia did for a well-known actress who came into the same coffee shop that our hidden woman is in now, however, this woman refuses the free beverage, we see the rule of thirds in this frame, putting the mysterious lady right in the middle, with both workers smiling at her. The lady stays in the centre, and takes off her glasses and tips the waiters, finally, she turns to the audience and it is revealed that she is Mia, and as she walks away we focus onto her, with the background becoming blurred, suggesting that as she walks away from this shop, she is, once again, walking away from her humble beginnings to where she is now, famous.

 The glasses return to her face, and we track her leaving the coffee place, the camera stalks her through the window, and she leaves on a caddy, very similar to the actress that was served earlier, Chazelle uses these references of past moments in the film to make us aware of Mia's fame, without ever needing to explain it, and so, as an audience, we know she is famous from a 30 second scene, rather than any exposition. The film has gone full circle now, and we can only assume that the woman that served Mia will one day be in the same situation Mia is now.

We see the hands of a pianist running up a keyboard, the colour of the previous scene has almost disappeared, and has been replaced with a darker palette. The piano dominates the frame, much like how it dominates the life of the pianist. We are not left to assume the artist this time however, as we pan around Sebastian until reaching his back, his face turning to the audience, we follow him leaving his station, tracking backwards at a mid shot until he leaves the frame in a dark shadow. This dark is completely juxtaposed with the light of Mia, and I think Chazelle uses this lighting contrast to show us the different lives they now lead, Mia literally being in the "limelight" and Seb silently following his passion, but, the colours, and lack of, also represent, to me, a lack of Mia in Seb's life, and I think Chazelle wants us to feel sympathy for Seb because as much as they are both successful in their own respective areas, Seb is missing that love that Mia gave him, and so his life is dark without her.

We return to the light of Mia's life, revealing her luxurious abode towering over her car, almost like a doll house and a toy car, yet again showing the success she has garnered. A billboard of a black and white actress appear next to her house, showing us that she has the modern reputation of the classic actors of the 50s and 60s. Her house is full of yellows, her signature colour, but is more oppressed by the clinical whites and creams that have been ushered into her home. These very positive colours match the mellow hue of lights in her palace, And as we track her to the right we see a man, who she has fallen in love with, and the close-up of their kiss is all we need to show this. Finally, the camera stands outside the doorway, watching the family. This frame within a frame looks like a picture frame, and the content of that picture is this "perfect family" that Mia now has.

We return to Seb, his apartment dark and lonely, we do not get an elaborate tour like we did with Mia, but a single still image that cuts to Seb cooking, alone. His home is restrained to the frame and give the audience a compact and lonesome feeling. This is reinforced by the darks and blues, Seb's theme of colour. The night matches this theme and we track Seb, and as we do we see Mia's face stamped on the side of his bar, she looks into the spectators soul, but Seb is oblivious to her, almost like he has tried to forget about her and move on, and nowhere more is this obvious than her face, clinging to the side of the screen, watching Seb walk away, into his bar, and his dreams.

We get an establishing shot of the city, dark and roughish. A mid-shot of Mia and her husband in their car, the yellows from her home that she left have been replaced by the blues of night. The blue becoming more and more poignant as she approaches a bar. We see Seb's logo, the blues and blacks of the bar cover the area and Mia herself, whole. We, and Mia, in the form of a point-of-view shot finally put or gaze onto Seb. As she sinks into her chair, the audience does too, wondering what might happen. As Seb slowly realizes her we see his face cut to a close up, and this is repeated with both characters, showing us their reactions to seeing each other. Lastly, Seb gazes down onto his keys, ready to play for her, one last time.