Despite looking half his age and slightly hungover and dopey – Damien Chazelle is young, intelligent, creative –
and ultimately, the next big thing.
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| Damien Chazelle |
At only 30 years old - he is an exceptionally young writer, and director. 'Whiplash', which came out this January; is his first 'recognised' film; and if it's anything to come by; there is plenty more where that came from.
In my opinion - the value of both a brilliant scriptwriter and director is indescribable; the ability displayed by Chazelle in perfectly articulating his ideas onto paper and then into film is second-to-none. What's more astounding is the fact he began writing the script, according to an interview on 'Academy Conversations', at the same time leading actor in 'Whiplash', Miles Teller; starred in 'Rabbit Hole' (Mitchell, 2010). To have such a superb writing skill and directing skill - a combination clearly potent, exemplified by the likes of Quentin Tarantino (it is arguable Whiplash is as disturbing as some of Tarantino's scenes); is an honourable feat, at an especially young age. The immense praise he has recieved at various film festivals, including the film's premier at Sundance festival - should continue.
Furthermore - Chazelle has some superb cinematography skills. He was recently quoted saying that, nowadays; music sequences in 'flicks' (films, I had to get the name of the blog somewhere in there..) tend to be filmed using 'seven cameras', and then 'all the work is done in the cutting room'. However - Chazelle did it differently for the superb Whiplash drum scenes - using various cameras and cutting at specific times to ensure the cutting-rate was asynchronous with the images.
Another name who deserves more than a mention is leading actor, Miles Teller. Although I believe the term 'leading actor' and 'supporting actor' are made redundant by a film such as this. The pair of Miles Teller and J.K Simmons reflect and play off one another superbly; a combination that seemed inevitable.
It is clear throughout the film that Chazelle had Teller in mind when writing the script - Teller perfectly portrays a character deeply motivated, whilst remaining bitter and weak. A perfect example of this is the scene where Fletcher (Simmons) brings Teller's character, Niemann - to tears; but tears which are resentful and symbolic meanwhile, and tears which make you physically ache.
Furthermore - I was amazed to discover that every drum hit throughout the film is played by Teller himself; a feat which was partially hidden through Chazelle's astounding extreme close ups. Despite the fact Teller has been playing the drums for around a decade - he says the difficult change from 'conventional' drum style, to 'jazz' drum style cannot be underestimated. It took him four-hour lessons three days a week for about a month prior to production to produce such a masterful performance. This kind of dedication is normally commendable at the Oscars; proved by the fact that despite Di Caprio's role in Wolf of Wall Street (Scorsese, 2014) was brilliant, Mathew McConaughey's bodily transformation, on top of his performance - earnt him best actor. However - I will be surprised if Teller receives an Oscar - he is 27 years young, and if his transformation from the 'dumb college kid' in films like Project X and 21 and over to Whiplash is anything to go by - this is his first performance deserved of immense praise.
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| Teller's tears beginning to form |
Furthermore - I was amazed to discover that every drum hit throughout the film is played by Teller himself; a feat which was partially hidden through Chazelle's astounding extreme close ups. Despite the fact Teller has been playing the drums for around a decade - he says the difficult change from 'conventional' drum style, to 'jazz' drum style cannot be underestimated. It took him four-hour lessons three days a week for about a month prior to production to produce such a masterful performance. This kind of dedication is normally commendable at the Oscars; proved by the fact that despite Di Caprio's role in Wolf of Wall Street (Scorsese, 2014) was brilliant, Mathew McConaughey's bodily transformation, on top of his performance - earnt him best actor. However - I will be surprised if Teller receives an Oscar - he is 27 years young, and if his transformation from the 'dumb college kid' in films like Project X and 21 and over to Whiplash is anything to go by - this is his first performance deserved of immense praise.
J.K Simmons, however - was involved from the very beginning; playing the almost-insane, Fletcher, in the 18 minute long preview showed at Sundance to gain funding. The role was perfect for Fletcher - he displayed immense efficiency and anger, as well as a host of other engaging emotions throughout the film; perfectly highlighted by this scene:
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| 'Whiplash' (Chazelle, 2015) is a must-see |
