Whiplash... holy hell

[Everlong]

So on my quest to catch at least 6 of the Best Picture nomineees (2 don't particularly interest me), I watched Whiplash tonight. All four of the nominees I've seen so far have been fantastic, but this was definitely the most intense emotionally. JK Simmons is fucking fantastic as the ruthless Dr. Fletcher, and man, my heart was pounding so hard by the end. Super, super intense, tough to watch at times, but one hell of a movie.

I would still probably give Best Picture to either Boyhood or Birdman at this point, but man was this outstanding. Simmons deserves the Oscar for Best Supporting, for sure. Highly recommended if you haven't seen it so far.

[Daz]

It's such an intense film. I love it when I can watch a film about a subject I have little to no interest in, and the performances alone can totally draw me in. the final twenty or so minutes are just insane, and it's basically just a dude playing drums. It's unbelievable.

[Matteo]

It's truly an intense, fervent slice of filmmaking. It turns jazz into a ruthless bloodsport. The towering screen presence of Teller and Simmons place aside, this film has to be one of the best, purely from an editorial standpoint, in quite some time. Tom Cross has exhibited fantastic dexterity here. This is how you build a sense of inexorable anxiety and strain - each cut just nervously adding to the next. So often throughout the viewing it felt like you were behind the drums, in Andrew's position, anxiously playing whilst Fletcher was stalking each and every auditory note, ready to pounce in vexation if you blundered. And the use of sound was impeccable - who would've thought jazz music could be so fanatical and daunting when placed in this context? And it was a directorial debut? And the director is barely 30? Am I dreaming? It's seriously a fantastic work - riddled with tension and restlessness throughout, with a remarkable closing act. Oh, and I see Chazelle's returning to the world of jazz with Miles Teller again for La La Land (2015)? Yes please. I can not recommend this enough. I've always loved Simmons, but he took it to new levels here - in fact, the he seems to adopt the same deceitful unpredictability and eccentricity as the memorable Vern Schillinger in Oz. This is, perhaps, my favourite film of 2014, and one of the best American films of the last 10-15 years.

[Kyle]

Who else gets visibly excited when reading what Matteo writes about the technical side of filmmaking?

I'm definitely going to have to watch this soon.

[Viazon]

I saw the trailer for this at the cinema and thought it looked shit. I judged it too soon. A film about drumming? Who in the hell wants to watch that?

However, I then started reading the reviews and it has gotten damn near universal acclaim. And I do love JK Simmons. So I am now looking forward to seeing this movie.

[Everlong]

I saw the trailer for this at the cinema and thought it looked shit. I judged it too soon. A film about drumming? Who in the hell wants to watch that?

However, I then started reading the reviews and it has gotten damn near universal acclaim. And I do love JK Simmons. So I am now looking forward to seeing this movie.

Do it man, you won't regret it. You wouldn't think that a movie about jazz drumming would be an edge-of-your-seat experience, but it really is. So intense.