Whiplash (2014)

	Directed by: Damien Chazelle	COUNTRY USA GENRE Drama/Music NORWEGIAN TITLE Whiplash RUNNING TIME 106 minutes
	Produced by: Jason Blum Helen Estabrook Michel Litvak David Lancaster
	Written by (based on his own short): Damien Chazelle

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Andrew Neiman	Miles Teller	½
Terence Fletcher	J. K. Simmons	½
Jim Neiman	Paul Reiser	-
Nicole	Melissa Benoist	-
Ryan Connolly	Austin Stowell	-

Review

Damien Chazelle’s directorial debut about a young, talented jazz drummer (Miles Teller) at the fictional Shaffer Conservatory in New York City and his clashes with the school’s star conductor and talent scout Terence Fletcher (J. K. Simmons) is a story of the axis between authoritarian rule and fear culture on the one hand and great talent and musical prowess on the other. Still, the film’s greatest merit isn’t as an homage to music, but rather as a visual masterpiece and an  uncompromising delve into the psychological aspects of this story. Chazelle brings his own rhythm and timing to this one, freely ignoring Terence Fletcher’s “time” at his peril.