Director: Damien ChazelleWritten by: Damien Chazelle
Genre: Drama
Starring: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Paul Reiser
Distributed by: Sony Pictures Classics
Release Date: October 10, 2014
My Rating: 9/10
I haven't seen a film like this in a very long time. Damien Chazelle, a 30-year-old French-American Harvard grad, writes and directs this emotionally raw and intense drama about a young drummer at a prestigious music school. The film is loosely based on Chazelle's own experiences playing in the Princeton High School Studio Band.
Whiplash tells the story of Andrew Neiman, a 19-year-old first-year student at the fictional Shaffer Music Conservatory in New York City. There, he joins the jazz band/ensemble as a drummer and begins his instruction under the merciless conductor Terence Fletcher, who uses both physically and emotionally abusive intimidation tactics to push his students to their full potential.
Determined to one day become as renown a drummer as one of his great idols, jazz legend Buddy Rich, Andrew endures mental, emotional, and physical pain to reach his goal, suffering through Fletcher's humiliating teaching methods along the way.
For any great jazz fans or music fans in general, let one thing be clear: this film is not merely about jazz music. The music is great, and the various band instruments' sounds are meshed together beautifully, as evidenced by the Oscar win for best Sound Mixing. However, the focus of the story seems to be much more centered on the student-teacher relationship, and how it gradually develops into one that becomes not only unprofessional and inappropriate but disturbing.
JK Simmons delivers a frightening, Oscar-winning performance as the villainous and almost psychopathic band conductor Fletcher. Simmons's ability to embody a character who does not appear to have a single good bone in his body is astounding, not only during his loud scenes but also throughout the scenes in which he appears more calm and composed. Simmons' voice, facial expressions, and movements all help bring to life this ruthless character who, much like Malcolm X, appears willing to achieve his goals by any means necessary.
Personally, I couldn't help but not only feel horror and hatred toward this character, but also a sort of frustration at the flaws in the logic and arguments behind his teaching style. For example, he states that if you don't push a musician to their limits, you could be depriving the world of the next big music star. First of all, that young musician may not have the potential to be the next big star, and even if he/she does, insulting and humiliating that person may eventually cause that person to feel LESS motivated to improve, depending on their personality. I understand what Fletcher is trying to say when he says "There are no two more harmful words in the English language than 'good job,'" but that is a stupid assertion nonetheless. Why? Because constructive criticism and positive reinforcement exist.
I apologize for this long and blatant tangent, I just needed to vent some of my frustrations about this character who has clearly never heard of the Pygmalion Effect. It's safe to say that any conductor who throws a chair at a student and proceeds to slap him multiple times for making a mistake like getting the tempo of a tune wrong requires some serious counseling. Not to mention a teacher who is also constantly hurling homophobic, racist, and otherwise insensitive personal insults at students in the misguided belief that there will be no repercussions.
Despite his lack of any major award nominations, Miles Teller also demonstrates his extraordinary talent as an actor in this film. It appears difficult to not like his character, not only for his initial innocence, but for his courage and perseverance under this maniacal conductor's teaching style. The wide range of emotions that Teller conveys through his voice and facial expressions is impressive.
The occasional fast-paced scenes or montages, accompanied by the vibrant jazz music that provides the backdrop for the story, all help to set the dark and stressful tone of the film. The dim lighting/contrast and close-ups of Miles Tellers and the other drummers' sweating and contorted faces, as well as their bloody hands clutching the drumsticks further help to emphasize how these young musicians, and especially Teller's character, are literally being pushed to their physical limits. (Yep, you read that correctly, there is a surprising amount of blood in this film for a story about a drummer)
My one criticism of the film is that there is one scene in particular (or two successive short and quick scenes) that does not seem very plausible or realistic due to what has happened previously in the story. I will not divulge what this scene for fear of spoiler alerts, but I will only say that it represents a turning point in the film which I think those who have seen the film will immediately recognize. I will only say that it involves an incident from which the character emerges less physically harmed than one would expect. This scene also culminates in a brief violent altercation, which again seemed too forced and overly dramatic.
Nevertheless, one thing is for certain: Whiplash delivers a visceral blow that will leave you shocked beyond belief. But don't worry: thankfully, the film ends on a good note (pun intended), even if the final outcome is not revealed until the last few seconds. A glimmer of hope remains at the end of this dark story and helps show how tenacity can in fact lead to satisfying results. In the end, I think that this is the main point that Whiplash is trying to make, by telling this simple, not convoluted, yet incredibly powerful and poignant story. Any musician, athlete, or any type of young apprentice who has ever had a teacher like Terence Fletcher will surely be able to relate to this young drummer on more than just one level.
