Whiplash

Whiplash tells the story of Andrew Neyman (Miles Teller) a young jazz drummer at Shaffer Conservatory.  He is only a freshman and catches the attention of Studio band director Terrence Fletcher.  When Fletcher invites Andrew to a practice session as an alternate for the main drummer Fletcher shows how much of control freak Fletcher is with the students he teaches.  Fletcher is a perfectionist and throughout his first practice with Andrew and the rest of the band Fletcher abuses as many of the musicians as he possibly can.

The main thing that makes Whiplash a great film is the adversarial relationship between Fletcher and Neyman.  Teller and Simmons have magnificent chemistry together as they seem to thrive in helping all of the film’s conflict play out.  This film does it’s very best to showcase how demanding going to school as a music major can be.  While all of the struggles depicted in the film may not be true for many music students the struggle to be the best at the instrument you use is definitely a reality.  There’s something so organic about the idea of having ambition and how that desire can make or break you is really what gives this film so much of its tension.  As much as ambition in the music world is a known trait, the idea that you want to be somebody worthy remembering often goes unexplored and is not discussed.  This is undoubtedly where Whiplash is unique among dramas that involve musicians.

There is a scene that for me really sums up why Whiplash is so great.  The scene takes place in a pizza restaurant where Neyman is on a date with a girl named Nicole (Melissa Benoist) and they are talking about what school she is attending.  She says she attends Foredom because it’s the school that accepted her and he says he attends Shaffer because it’s one of the top jazz schools in the country.  The point is made that Neyman has a direction in life and doesn’t know how someone else can live a life where they are directionless.  This scene is vital because it shows what Andrew is most afraid of which is not having a place in the world.

This film is impeccably composed and the shot are very tight and in close with the performers so that when Andrew is practicing or performing a concert the audience feels like they are performing with the character.  Part of the realism of those shots comes from the fact that Teller has been playing the drums since he was 15.  He actually went through a drum camp to prepare for his role in this film and it shows.  Director Damien Chazelle makes a point to showcase Teller’s ability at least once in every music scene in the film.

The real breakout star of this film is J.K. Simmons.  As much as he is known for playing the role of J. Jonah Jamison in the Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy he really comes into his own after having been a character actor for decades.  Fletcher is sadistic in his cruelty and unrelenting in his fierce opinions of those he mentors.  Simmons really commands the room as Fletcher.  The one-liners he gets are not only hysterical but also horribly offensive and cruel.  I found myself cringing because I was so afraid of what Fletcher would do next and to elicit such a strong physical response in a viewer is a testament to that powerful performance.

Teller has been someone audiences have started to notice and he gives Andrew a vulnerability that only an actor of his caliber can exude.  He portrays so many moments honestly that he becomes instantly relatable even though his character has moments of where the character is unlikable.  When he is at his weakest is when Teller excels at bringing truth to his performance.

The music arrangements are fantastic and really display the beautiful complexities that jazz compositions can offer.  What’s most shocking is that music doesn’t accompany the story as much as it narrates the unfolding tension between Teller and Simmons and Chazelle is very clever to have the music set the tone in such a way.

In the end, Whiplash is a complicated film about how ambition and pride both can make an artist great and break him entirely.  The real gift the audience gets is watching it all unfold.  Like most jazz as an art form this film inspires and shocks leaving little time to do more than breathe and that’s why when Oscar makes his nomination this film will be somewhere on its list.  A new classic.