Good Job

Rating: 9/10 (20 October 2014)

Andrew Nieman is a shy freshman in the Schaefer Conservatory of Music in New York City. He does not have friends as he is always obsessively practicing on his drums. He catches the attention of a notoriously hard- driving teacher Terence Fletcher. Fletcher recruits Andrew to join his studio jazz band. There, Fletcher pushes Nieman to perfect playing of his instrument with an abrasive instruction style that teeters on military drill sergeant abuse, both physically and emotionally. Will Andrew make it through or will he snap under the pressure?
Miles Teller is a young star on the rise. He was in three other films this year alone, "That Awkward Moment", "Divergent" and "Two Night Stand." He is set to be seen as Mr. Fantastic in the reboot of The Fantastic Four next year, along with four other films. "Whiplash" proves that he is also a serious actor to reckon with. As the drums prodigy Andrew, Teller looks like he mastered playing that drum set for real for this difficult role. Unlike the piano, it is hard to fake playing the drums. His passion in playing is palpable from across the screen.
J.K. Simmons, whom many of us only know as J. Jonah Jameson, Peter Parker's boss, in the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man films, plays the irascible Mr. Fletcher, a teacher who is never satisfied with only good enough. He plays a hateful character who tended to exceed his boundaries as a mentor, but Simmons imbues Fletcher with other layers so we do not only see him as just the villain. Be it in his expletive-laden tirades or with just one penetrating stare, Simmons drips a malevolence we all feel.
"Whiplash" features some glorious jazz performances since this is about a jazz band. I personally do not like jazz so much, but the precision of the playing and the richness of the music is hard to resist. The perfectly-edited scenes showing the band as they played the most formidable-looking sheets of music had the vigor and energy of a sports match. That super-intense final scene alone will literally keep you at the edge of your seat. The audience in the theater where I watched erupted into spontaneous applause when it ended.
This is certainly not just another "Mr. Holland's Opus" or "Music of the Heart". Writer and director Damien Chazelle gives us the same basic student-teacher drama and beautiful music, but presented his story in a most unexpectedly disturbing, suspenseful, violent and even horrific way.