Sooo how do we think this will effect La La Land's legacy?

It'll always be on the top of the "most nominated" lists which will keep it relevant. Beyond that I think it a little bit depends on where Chazelle goes from here. If he becomes the big deal it seems like he might it will be remembered as a big deal. If he fades away and 10 years from now is just another director it will fade more.

Citizen Kane vs. How Green Was My Valley 2.0.

Mike said it best: the backlash is abated somewhat and it is seen as something of a Singin' in the Rain or a Cabaret: a musical classic.

Well I think it will be one of the big classics of the decade regardless. I mean, the Oscars don't have an actual effect on how well a movie ages.

I don't think this whole affair changes anything for La La Land, it's Moonlight that benefits from it. In terms of exposure at least. That will help it being remembered and watched in the future.

But a prestigious director will bring it more exposure

Singin in the Rain had Gene Kelly and the other two were directed by Robert Wise
 

The Oscars have nothing to do with a movie's legacy. When people talk about Citizen Kane or The Graduate they don't say "Oh, but those movies didn't win Best Picture" as if that's somehow a knock against the movie. La La Land is one of the decade's defining films regardless.

I also think Best Director is starting to be a parallel honor to Best Picture. When you look at recent Picture/Director splits, the Best Director winner was usually the better movie with the exception of 12 Years a Slave/Gravity in 2013.

I think it curbs the recent backlash but I think what ultimately happened is that some people went batshit crazy and start saying it was better than classics and that is probably what contributed to it losing a bit. When people took off the rose-colored glasses and actually went wait a min, and then evaluated it.

Basically this. I think in our days of internet communication it has just become impossible for a movie to maintain a high reputation on the short term.

I can't remember the last time a bp frontrunner was being compared to classics like that? Granted Titanic won before social media but I don't even think people were saying it was better than Network, Singin in the Rain and freakin Casablanca.

That's because lately the BP frontrunners haven't been all that good, so not many people actually felt they were comparable to the big classics. La La Land in comparison is a phenomenom that has quickly become an all time favourite of many people, and there also is a bunch of classics that naturally invite the comparison, given its rare genre, its old school style and the fact that it itself references many of those movies. So it's just natural to want to compare them.

I mean for example there are people who think The Revenant is great but there doesn't really exist an obvious classic to compare it to.

I still think La La Land will have a similar Legacy as The Artist, a well made and enjoyable throwback to old Hollywood that probably didn't deserve best picture, granted La La Land didn't actually win so it won't have that final caveat.