Counting Down The Fourteen Best Films Of 2014
In this totally subjective game of lists, there can only be one winner.
#1: Whiplash, dir. Damien Chazelle
Look, I called it at the time. Every other film this year was not quite my tempo. The only thing I saw that could have beaten Whiplash is Birdman, which isn’t technically out until next year.
Damien Chazelle’s morally complex portrait of co-dependent psychopathy is immersive, exhilarating and even frightening to watch, with mesmerising, award-worthy performances by both Miles Teller and JK Simmons.
As I wrote: “Whiplash is smart and subtle about the distinctions between motivation and obsession; inspiration and hazing – the story supports many different readings, but never simplistic ones. I left the cinema feeling absolutely buzzed, and it’s stayed with me ever since.”
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Mel Campbell is a freelance journalist and cultural critic. She tweets at @incrediblemelk.