sexta-feira, 13 de fevereiro de 2015

Whiplash (2014)


In one of the best surprises of the year,Whiplash, director Damien Chazelle (29 year old director!) brings forward the story of Andrew Neiman, portrayed by Miles Teller, a young drummer in his effort to succeed in what is considered the best jazz music school in the United States. In front of him is the jazz teacher Fletcher, portrayed by a superb J.K. Simmons. The duo of characters carries the movie through a world of challenge, strictness, commitment and accomplishment, flesh and bone, blood and tears, in what is an hyperbole of transcendence and success through hard work. J.K. Simmons is menacing and, more than demanding, pushes his students to the very psychological and physical limit by using questionable and anti-ethical methods. But besides from this eye-to-eye musical duel between teacher and student, master and disciple, Whiplash is about the statement of a teenager who wants to build his own identity, far from the ropes of the traditional professional path his family (here representing the average family model) wants for him. Despite all this, Neiman is not a Rebel Without a Cause. He has a cause: to be the best. The way the movie's plot entwines with the formality of the direction is amazing: intense and visceral. The camera work is claustrophobic and unsettling, fusing perfectly with the mood the movie sets. All the aspects of the film, music included (this is real music, real jazz, Buddy Rich, Charlie Parker, Whiplash is a must for the most traditional jazz lovers) are so intense, and intensely linked, being both minimalist and sober in terms of presentation, that it drives the audience into a truly exhilarating movie experience. There are comparisons to be made with 2010's best movie, Black Swan, as it is a clear inspiration for the whole feel and also final catharsis: an intense 12 minute scene that is simply the best moment of cinema in 2014.



Trailer follows:


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