WHIPLASH | Film Review (NO SPOILERS)

(Source:galleryhip)

Title: Whiplash
Director: Damien Chazelle 
Starring: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Paul Reiser
Originally Released: 2014
Running Time: 106 mins / 1 hour 46 mins

Premise. The film follows Teller's character Andrew Neiman, an aspiring jazz drummer, who seeks acclaim for his talents, but most importantly from his teacher/conductor, the intimidating Terrence Fletcher (Simmons). 

Thoughts going into the film: Why, oh why is this nominated for Best Picture? (I'll admit now, I hadn't even seen a trailer). A film about drumming, with the obnoxious Miles Teller? - I say this after watching Teller in a series of irritating roles. Let's just get through it. 

Thoughts immediately after: Oh my, I was incredibly wrong. 

The Film: To talk about the film's plot is a tricky one, does it really have much of one? It's almost high concept in its premise. It is essentially what the premise suggests, but with so much more character development, sweat and a nervous tick thrown on top. The progression of the events was almost like a drumbeat (pardon the cliché), it was never quite slow, and often felt it was rolling up to a big clash of cymbals. There was a nervous energy in the film, I felt like I was constantly in a panic with Teller's character. The editing came together to create this real sense of urgency that matched Neiman's desire to gain the approval of Fletcher. The film was constantly bubbling up to something, and crashed with explosive scenes of emotion. The relationship between Neiman and Fletcher is an odd one, and the most central thing to the film. They seem to bring out the very best and the very worst in each other. I really can't seem to transcribe how the film made me feel, but everything seemed to come together to create a fantastic piece of cinema. 

(Source:filmoria)

The Cast: Teller is an iffy one for me, yet he proved himself in this film that he can stretch himself from the world of quirky comedy. He's learning his trade, and this is by far his best performance to date, even if all he does is maniacally bang sticks on drums. Simmons is obviously the stand-out: Oscar nomination, BAFTA win, it's set in stone! He was fantastic, his characterisation of Fletcher was intimidating, I'm sure he's a nice guy in real life, but I have some doubts after his job in this. (I joke). To be honest, the rest of the casting wasn't really much of a big deal, we see Reiser as the father, but not enough to say anything worthwhile, other than his character aided the development in Neiman's progression. Melissa Benoist was great, though hardly being in it, she's becoming more than just "that girl from Glee." Good casting with her, though I would have liked to have seen more of her, but I guess there's reasoning for that.

Final Thoughts: A fantastic film with everything you could want, apart from a distinct lack of female characters and a complex narrative. One could argue the film is art for art's sake and that the narrative is weak, but I'd disagree. The film is an exploration of the psyche almost, whilst constantly building upon the relationship of the two main characters, who become more than just the awful people we associate them as at the beginning. The film is a treat for cinema goers, it doesn't require constant attention, yet it commands and seizes it. An insane sense of pace and timing, the film is almost like a jazz piece itself. It has a rhythm, an urgency and fantastic sense of pace, so much so I'm still reeling. Though I initially thought this wouldn't be "quite my tempo" I was once again proven wrong. 

★★★★½