I got to say I was WOWed and I am not even a jazz fan but the performance and the intensity of the movie got to me through every single step of the way. I wanted to reach out and strangle Simmons for the most part of the movie for his EPIC performance, which IMHO should really snag that best supporting actor award this year..
Last but definitely not least Mr. Miles Teller, allow me to tip my hat for the 27 year old actor who throughout most of his performance I simply could not keep up with his hand speed while he was holding those drumsticks!!! Amazing!

However, his real epic-ness did not drive from his musical performance which do not get me wrong here was simply awesome.. It was from his struggle, you could feel his need, his thirst for getting what he wanted to boarder line obsession and self harm, that made me feel his character in every step of the way.. Really, BRAVO!

Whiplash received critical acclaim upon its première on the opening night of the 2014 Sundance Film Festival.

The film has a "certified fresh" score of 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 234 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6 out of 10.

The critical consensus states, "Intense, inspiring, and well-acted, Whiplash is a brilliant sophomore effort from director Damien Chazelle and a riveting vehicle for stars J. K. Simmons and Miles Teller."

The film also has a score of 88 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 49 critics, indicating "critical acclaim"


Peter Debruge, in his review for Variety, said that the film "Demolishes the clichés of the musical-prodigy genre, investing the traditionally polite stages and rehearsal studios of a top-notch conservatory with all the psychological intensity of a battlefield or sports arena."

Awesome movie. Intense, greatly acted, greatly written, great music. Lot of other reviews touched on many things, but here is why it was so special for me:

1. The structure of the story. On normal story (look up Hollywood formula) you have
first: introduction with the main character taking a choice (without it you have no movie) e.g. Matrix taking the red pill
second: character tries to achieve his goal, but gets to a low point.
third: climax, character achieves his target emerging from the low point

this creates emotional satisfaction. Some movies play with this "formula". And it's the case of the Whiplash. Here, everything happens in last 5 minutes, which then creates the "Wow" you can read in reviews. The whole movie is introducing characters their motivations, and gets them to the base for the climax. (decision to go back, he is at the lowest low, and shines).
further why the last 5 minutes are so strong is my second reason:

2. The Antagonist (Simmons) - greatly acted, he as the main obstacle Teller is against. But Simmons has its own story arch that climaxes at the same time with Tellers, making the last 5 minutes two times stronger! (spoiler: wanted revenge, did not work out, wanted in even more, but then found what he was looking for: someone who will shine, that he helped = smile, satisfaction)

feel free to discuss if you don't agree :-)

Loved the movie.

Whiplash tells a great story, a sad one too.
Andrew Neiman is drummer who aspires greatness and is fished by Terence Fletcher a renown teacher in New York.
While everything looks like a dream come true, not everything is as it seems.

My opinion:
[spoiler]Even though I loved the movie I have to take this out of my chest.
Fletcher is a sociopathic narcissistic SOB that exploits the physical and psychological strength his students in the name of success.
I hated the fact that Fletcher exploited his students and controlled them so 'well'. I hated the fact that Andrew searched for Fletcher's approval every chance he had. And even at the end, when he could have just ended his solo (which was awesome btw), and walked away proving his point. But no, Fletcher had Neiman so rilled in that the kid wanted is approval despite all events that happened before.
The story of pushing someone to their limits and if they give up and walk way, meaning they were not meant for success is completely BS. There are times to say 'good job' is a good thing, and there are others where pushing is a good thing, the secret is knowing both.
[/spoiler]

It is less than what is described as a wonderful piece of art consisting of music, artistic performance, directing and photography. It's one of my favorite movies. This piece of art inspired me

Pretty intense drumming movie. I think it's about the pursuit of perfection and maybe something about fathers. Really great finale. Fingers bleeding. Put this ham on your face!