Mindblowing, our generation's "Amadeus"

Rating: 8/10 (18 March 2015)

And it does not even need a Best Picture win for this description. Damien Chazelle's "Whiplash" was one of the big players this awards season mounting in three Academy Award wins. J.K. Simmons basically dominated the supporting actor (so happy for him, he is such a likable guy, but was he really supporting?) category from start to finish and Chazelle himself managed a writing nomination with the Academy. Given he just turned 30 and has a bright future ahead of him, I am sure he can live without the director nomination. "Whiplash" is a great film. It starts off good, but quickly has you on the edge of your seat for the rest of the film. They kept it at clearly under 2 hours, which helped a lot as it would have sucked if they had filled the film with unnecessary scenes. This way now, it's really all essential from start to finish.
There were a few scenes I struggled with initially, like the protagonist breaking up, but in retrospective I have to say it all makes sense now. His self-confidence grows with his dedication for his art mounting in the explosion of his anger when he physically attacks Fletcher (Simmons). Fletcher is possibly this year's most interesting character. No black-and-white as he walks the fine line between genius and insanity in every single scene. One great example would be how he talks to a little girl and asks her gently if she wants to join his band one day and in the next scene he talks to his band the way he always does. The monster shows again. The ending was great too. I was a bit unsure as they missed a good ending scene when Fletcher asked Teller's character if he wants to fill in in his new band, but the actual ending was at least as good. Fletcher really gets his Bird in the end. By the way, I wondered if he could shoot the young man on stage (nice "Birdman" reference). Everything seemed possible, but the path of the wrong sheet was a brilliant one as well.
No doubt that Teller is a real competitor for best actor under 30 right now after his performance here. He would have deserved a lead actor Oscar nomination as well, over Cumberbatch for example. The new "Fantastic Four" makers seem to agree. And Simmons is just a force of nature in this film. He also appeared in Chazelle's short film that this is based on, so great choice for him back then and good job on Chazelle for not giving the part to anybody else. Not many out there who would have been as good. And with said short story background, this project was a true success story that goes way back to a stroke of genius by Chazelle.
Now, if you are interested in drumming, let me suggest you Richard Jenkins' "The Visitor", a more silent approach on the issue. Or you could maybe also call "Whiplash" a "Black Swan" for males. Or Fletcher could be categorized as a more radical Dr. House. Anyway, back to this one here. It's my number one or two of the year right now (against Cotillard's Oscar-nominated film) and I cannot recommend enough watching it. You will not be disappointed. It's been a while since I had a theater that applauded after the end of the film, but this one did and it was oh so deserving. Each scene a winner and this movie is the perfect example of how a great script is much much more important than a cast that includes the best actors on the planet.