Damien Chazelle is one of the directors apart of the next generation of filmmakers. The 70s had Lucas, Spielberg, Coppola, De Palma. The 90s had Smith, Tarantino and Rodriguez. This current generation includes many directors including Jordan Peele, Robert Eggers, Ari Aster, Greta Gerwig and Damien Chazelle to name a few. Through the short career that he has had so far, Chazelle has proven himself to be a master of his craft with a long future of films in front of him. Here's my thoughts on his filmography and my ranking of his films from least favourite to favourite.
5 - Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench
Damien Chazelle’s low budget first film is definitely one that showed his talent early on. This was the first time that he worked with Justin Hurwitz who has become a frequent collaborator for all his future projects. The film also was made for 60,000 dollars, so it’s nothing crazy impressive like his future films, but it definitely proved that Chazelle knows how to utilize a budget and a concept. The plot is very similar to La La Land as the concept was re-used and perfected when he made La La Land. The film did well at festivals and kickstarted the career of one of the best directors of our current time. While this is my least favourite Damien Chazelle film, I in no way hate it. You can tell that he was testing out his craft as many elements that have become Chazelle-isms are in this film. The dynamic camera movements, the obsession with jazz and the fight for artistic success while dealing with other tough elements in ones life are all present in this story. The film is a very competent one that showed Chazelle’s true craft and control over his projects. The performances and the score are standouts and elevate it higher than many other filmmakers first films. While this is at the bottom of my list, it’s still better than many other filmmaker’s filmographies.
The Rating
4 - First Man
First Man was a surprising film for me. It was Chazelle’s follow up to La La Land. He had just made two back to back perfect films with La La Land and Whiplash and he decided to make a film that is very reminiscent of the space and sci-fi films that inspired him during his rise. Many of the elements that make up a Chazelle film are strong in this. The score is fantastic and the performances, specifically Ryan Gosling were top notch. The way the film was written and directed was also very on par with Chazelle’s previous work, but it lacked the magic that I felt with his last two films. I’m a sci-fi fan and i’m definitely a lover of the films that clearly inspired how Chazelle approached this movie, but I feel Chazelle works better when he is focusing on his undying love for the art of music and cinema. There’s probably a more personal element there as i’m an artist and a filmmaker, so I relate to those movies more. First Man isn’t a terrible film in any meaning of the word, but I found myself not being able to relate or fully invest into the film as much as I can for the rest of the movies on this list. The film has some excellent technical achievements, but it didn’t strike me to the core like the three films above it on this list did. First Man is an interesting departure from Chazelle’s style that still maintains strong qualities that make him a fantastic filmmaker, but I didn’t personally find myself connecting to the film as much as I was expecting.
The Rating:
3 - La La Land
La La Land is the Damien Chazelle film that everyone knows. The record amount of awards nominations and praise showcased Chazelle’s talent, even to the most casual film viewer. The simple story of two star crossed lovers as they navigate Hollywood has been done before, but not to the level of style and expertise that Chazelle brings. La La Land was the first Chazelle that I got to experience as I checked it out during its theatrical run with my mom. Leaving that theatre that night, we both agreed that we just saw something truly special. Before Babylon’s release, this was the Chazelle film that I felt showcased his raw and spectacular ability to tell visual stories. From the first scene, Damien is showing off how masterful he is with using cinematography and editing to further showcase the rich intricacies of the story. It’s quite impressive to see the process that Damien goes through to frame these scenes, even going as far as shooting it on his iPad to fully grasp what he is working with. The performances are the element that everyone calls back to when they acknowledge the strength of the film. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone give two of the best performances that they have given throughout their careers. This film, like all other Chazelle films, would not work if the core character elements were not done with such expertise. At the end of the film, one nod that Gosling gives is one of the saddest moments and that wouldn’t have been possible without a strong performance. The movie revels in the way that it looks, specifically the cinematography and the color grading. The film looks beautiful and that fact almost becomes a character in itself. Damien clearly has a deep knowledge of color theory because he uses such deep hues to showcase the deep emotions in the scene. La La Land on the surface looks like a simple musical but on a deeper level its a character study on those who dream for bigger in their lives. This message is further exemplified with the stellar cinematography, color grading, editing and all of it is wrapped up by the excellent performances and the writing incased in those said performances. La La Land is Damien Chazelle’s most popular film and I understand why, it’s definitely the most universal and accessible work in his filmography.
The Rating:
2 - Whiplash
The film that showed the world how talented Damien Chazelle is. A tense thriller about the strange and aggressive dynamic between a student and his teacher. Many would say that this is their favourite Chazelle film or their favourite film in general (including my sister) and I find validity with that. Whiplash is such a strong film in every element possible. The film is a spectacle marvel while also being a tense claustrophobic thriller that gets under your skin. One specific scene in general that hurts to watch is one where Andrew (Miles Teller) has to prove himself against two other students leading to the trio drumming as hard as they can for a solid two or three hours. Just watching him drum to the point of physical mutilation always gets under my skin. The performances in this film are out of this world, specifically Miles Teller and JK Simmons. This film led to Simmons winning the Oscar as Andrew’s overly abusive and manipulated teacher who pushes him to the edge. Teller is also phenomenal as a student who wants nothing more than success in his art form and lets himself go through the abuse in hopes of being one of the best drummers in history. You are taken on the journey with Andrew as he pushes himself to the absolute edge of his sanity for his dreams. As states before, there aren’t many films that have me feeling stressed or tense the entire time and Whiplash does it to me. That is definitely from the fantastic performances but also the perfect writing and directing from Damien Chazelle. He knew what he wanted from this film and put 110% into the process of making it. Justin Hurwitz’s score also is an instant classic that has proven itself as an iconic piece of film history. The final 10 minutes of this film as you see Andrew finally perform Whiplash and blow everyone away is one of the greatest endings in all of cinema history. Similar to films like La La Land and Babylon, Chazelle utilizes the last 10 minutes of the film to make a final point and bring everything to a huge climax which happens sonically in this film. When you finish Whiplash, you want to experience it again all over again. Everyone knows where they were when they saw this film for the first time and how they were blown away with the film in general. Whiplash is one of the greatest films ever made and that’s not an exaggeration.
The Rating:
1 - Babylon
Chazelle’s magnum opus that promises so much and delivers on everything that it promises. An epic on the scale of “The Godfather”, “The Wolf Of Wall Street” or even some of Fellini’s best that showcases the grand shift in Cinema from the crazy silent era of film in the 1920s to the more elegant and proper talkie studio era of film beginning in the 1930s while also being an intimate love letter to the history that built the film industry to what it is today and the people who should not be forgotten. This film is both horny and touching as it balances the two concepts of the industry that sometimes mistreats its talent and the passionate artists who broke through the mold and helped push us forward as filmmakers. The pure insanity of that period of time and the interpersonal elements of those apart of it are shown equally. Like every Damien Chazelle film, he puts care into all the elements of the experience. First big element that is done to perfection is the acting. From a fantastic star making performance from Diego Calva as Manny to a career best performance from Margot Robbie as Nellie LaRoy, the acting in this film is off the charts. No one in this film is a weak link as everyone plays a very important part in the big picture. The atmosphere of this film is also something to behold. Damien brings you into the world of Cinema at that time period and totally immerses you in it. The first scene, being a 30 minute party scene where everyone is introduced is one of the greatest openings i’ve seen in a film ever. The film is so fluid in its narrative and its cinematography that you feel like you are building this industry with the characters. The film’s runtime was never an issue, even though it’s 3 hours and 10 minutes because Damien uses every second to the best of his ability. The pace of this film is rapid as it feels like you’re on a massive cocaine trip, similar to many of the characters of the film. There are also tense scenes that are slower but utilize the stress present in Whiplash. One scene specifically includes Nellie and the crew trying to make their first sound picture and nothing is going right. This scene had me the most tense out of anything I saw in 2022. The score is super impressive as well as Justin Hurwitz takes everything he put into his previous collaborations with Chazelle and cranks it to a million. The score is as rapid and fluid as the film and the characters present in the film. It all culminates in a 10 minute scene, similar to Whiplash and La La Land which sees Manny realize the importance of their films in the grand scheme of cinema history as a cacophony of colours and score mix with footage of the greatest of film’s history and celluloids of the characters and their work. Many would see this ending as self masturbatory, but it just hit a certain spot in my heart that had me tearing up in the theatre. It’s probably based on the fact that i’m a filmmaker and this film solidified the concept that all of us artists and performers are important to the history of this art form no matter how big or small we see ourselves in the big picture. Babylon is Damien Chazelle’s magnum opus where he took everything that he has learned and cranked it to a million while also giving us a super excessive yet touching look at those who helped build the art form that we all love, cinema. This is Chazelle’s “The Godfather” and i’m not being facetious. This is my favourite film from him and I see this film making an impact on my career and the way that I see all future films. This one is super special to me and I relate to Nellie’s free and wild spirit way more than most people seeing this film will. Margot Robbie is one of my favourite actresses and Nellie LaRoy is her best performance. I love Nellie LaRoy and she’s one of my favourite characters in Cinema History. Nellie has joined the hall of fame for characters that I relate to way too much and I accept that. I love this film and Nellie so much and I don’t see that ever changing. The magic that I felt seeing La La Land in 2016 was present here but multiplied by a million. This film needs to be seen to be believed.
The Rating:
Damien Chazelle hasn't been in the business as long as many other filmmakers that I hold highly, but with his run of films so far he has proven that he is one of the best directors of the current generation. Through 5 films, Damien was able to achieve so much and rise up to a level that many take multiple more movies to get to. Damien Chazelle is no where close to finishing his career and I'm excited to see what he does next!
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