Whiplash

🔥 2nd Watch | Top 100 | 2014 Ranked Happy Birthday FinnyBinny! For the Birthday Bash (here is the films from the challenge ranked), I watched Whiplash, the directorial debut of Damien Chazelle's prosperous career so far. Personally, I don't think Chazelle has come close to topping Whiplash yet, and that is for good reason. Despite the musical setting, something that doesn't appeal to me very much, Whiplash has so much to offer: Amazing cinematography, Oscar-worthy performances, an amazing battle between teacher and student, and a deep-rooted core based on the drive to be great and the consequences it yields. Whiplash's runtime is close to two hours, but the film moved so fast that it honestly only felt like one. There was a point in the movie where I was very confused, because there was no way we're already at this point in the movie. It feels like the movie has barely started! The fast pace of the movie helps create an immersive feeling, as the pace resembles the intense music throughout the movie. The music that Fletcher composes is strong and energetic, and requires a lot out of the musicians, forcing them to their breaking point just like what Fletcher did to Andrew. Pacing relates to the ratio on how long a film feels compared to the actual runtime. Therefore, due to Whiplash basically feeling like an hour, it's not hard to see how amazing the pacing in Whiplash is. I would actually consider Whiplash to be one of the best paced films that I've ever seen. The cinematography in Whiplash was honestly incredible. The dynamic between Andrew and Fletcher was spectacular, and one reason why this was the case was due to the cinematography. Whether it was using subtle camera angles to display power such as Andrew's face during his first day in the band being shown with low angle shots until Fletcher arrived and it switched to being shown with high angle shots, having the character's faces take up a huge portion of the screen to make their conversations together very intense such as when Fletcher is yelling at Andrew because it's not his tempo, framing the shots to establish dominance such as Fletcher's body overpowering and obscuring Andrew when he was sitting on the ground, or utilizing lighting to convey a sense of superiority such as in the shot in the final scene where Fletcher announces the song Andrew doesn't know. These are all ways that the cinematography is used to establish the amount of power between the characters. In addition to being important on the relationship between Fletcher and Andrew, there are also many shots showing different angles of the instruments, making sure that during rapid cutting music sequences don't get repetitive. There is always another beautifully framed shot that looks fantastic. It's part of the reason why Whiplash looks so amazing. As with any Damien Chazelle film, the score in Whiplash is absolutely fantastic and is a huge part of the film, quite literally in this case. Listening to the music puts you in a groove that is indescribable, and along with shots of the drums, trumpets, and other instruments playing together in a montage, the viewer truly feels the brilliance of each song. Whiplash's soundtrack fits the movie so well. It's definitely one of the best aspects about the film. However, the best aspect of the film is easily J.K. Simmons who portrays the harsh instructor. Some might be tempted to say that J.K. Simmons is overacting in this movie, but it honestly works very well in this movie as it displays how over-the-top he is and how he is committed to pushing his students to the brink in order to squeal out the weak and harden the determined. Without J.K Simmons, the movie just wouldn't be the same. He is the sole reason why this movie is considered a masterpiece and not a great movie. I do admit, J.K. Simmons's performance is boosted tremendously by the amazing lines and insults he is given throughout the movie. However, it's his delivery that truly makes them standout. He is the reason why Fletcher is such a great character. This isn't to say the other actors aren't great too. Miles Teller does a stellar job at portraying Andrew and the side characters do a great job as well. When Andrew is struggling for the first time in Fletcher's band, the viewer could subtly sense the amusement of the main drummer. Getting nominated for five Oscars and winning three of them in Sound mixing, Editing, and Best Supporting Actor, Whiplash is no ordinary movie. In the words of Fletcher, Whiplash truly earned it. With exceptional acting, exceptional screenwriting, exceptional music, exceptional editing, exceptional visuals, and just an exceptional atmosphere in general, Whiplash is truly an amazing movie. Even movies about music don't quite match your taste, watch it anyways. There is so much to love about it that I would recommend Whiplash to everybody, unless you'll get offended by Fletcher's insults. ⬅️ Previous Review: Dunkirk