I don't want to be great. I want to be one of the Great.

Rating: 8/10 (26 March 2016)

I like when Hollywood dares to cast a young actor that doesn't fit their standards of beauty. The lead worked extremely well with his character and quite frankly, I think that's what kept me riveted. Adversity fuels him, exhaustion is merely an obstacle in his path. The actor's nervousness and receptivity is mesmerizing and will entrap you in his world. The camera could have pulled a Lars Von Trier, standing just behind his shoulder and it would have felt the same.
While the audience isn't courted so much into caring for the characters, the story does bring its emotional content with themes that appeal to everyone. The desire to make something out of your life, the sacrifices, the labour. But who knows how it will end? It's different for each of us.
JK Simmons was remarkable and his chemistry with the lead could have been better but it was sufficient. It was just enough to hold the movie together.
Now the bleeding hands were great at first but that quickly wore down. Everyone one of us who's ever played an instrument (which is everyone), knows the hardship isn't in the playing but in the accuracy. I get that his main struggle was to keep up the fast beat but as I said, the bleeding hands metaphor quickly wore down. If it had been a trombone, would they have made his lips bleed? The fingers of a piano player? It was just too much. Sweat would have sufficed.
Ups and downs - not the greatest movie I've seen this year, but good. Pretty good. It's an 8/10 for me; would recommend it to a specific crowd only.