"Drumline" for White People

Rating: 8/10 (3 November 2014)

"Whiplash" is a DRAMA (not comedy) about a drum student, Andrew (Miles Teller) who attends a prestigious music conservatory with dreams of becoming "one of the greats" in the world of jazz percussion. His talent and sheer desire lands him in the class of the most notable jazz instructor on campus, Terrence Fletcher (J.K. Simmons); an emotionally and (at times) physically abusive man who militaristically and controversially pushes his students past their limits, in his quest to stop at nothing to find the next great jazz musician.
This is a film which is either a lesson in how not to be content with mediocrity, or an examination of an abusive relationship. Whatever it is, experiencing the journey Andrew takes throughout as he decides whether to travel down a path which may lead to fame and isolation or the path which leads to a normal life, but away from his obsession, is fascinating.
Writer/director Damien Chazelle's directorial style here seems to be one of simply laying down the tracks (or keeping the camera rolling) so as not to derail his two converging leads (Simmons and Teller). And in a movie which is so performance driven, this is all I could've asked from a director; to get the hell out of the way and let these powerhouses do their thing. But if I had to pay Chazelle a single individual compliment (other than the perfect use of heavily technical lingo throughout, while still keeping everything understandable for those not as familiar with reading music or tempo) it would have to be for his superb construction of the final ten minutes of "Whiplash", which includes the choice to hold on that final sequence (apologies for being so vague) and allow it to reach its natural conclusion.
The one issue I had with this movie actually stems from J.K. Simmons' larger than life/scene-chewing performance, which while attention grabbing, at many points distracted from the film's dramatic element. In truth, this aspect may be the fault of Chazelle's script, which has Simmons spewing the most degrading and comically mean spirited lines of dialogue. The problem with that is: I didn't know if his character was meant to be intimidating or just comically mean, since the instances when he is berating these young students, making them play drums to the point of exhaustion, made me want to laugh, simply on the basis of his verbiage. The act of watching someone struggle and suffer while someone spews funny one-liners, just doesn't quite work. On the other hand, for some, his performance may only add to the adrenaline dump of this movie.
Final Thought: A lot of Oscar buzz will be focused on Simmons' performance. It will draw comparisons to R. Lee Ermey in "Full Metal Jacket". But forget all of that! The real star of the show is Miles Teller, who gives an electrifyingly exhausting performance, both emotionally and physically. One year ago he was in a movie called "The Spectacular Now", and gave a performance which began his ascension into the stratosphere of young actors everybody should keep an eye on. "Whiplash" sees Teller at his apex. He not only deserves an Award nomination, but also the career Shia LaBouf would have had if he'd not A-holed it all away.