I’ve always been drawn to movies about individuals pushed to their extremes, driven to the breaking point by their obsessions. With Whiplash, you get a double dose of just that with the great duo of Miles Teller and J. K. Simmons giving it their absolute all.
A Dynamic Duo
Whiplash follows a young drummer named Andrew Nieman (Teller) who dreams of becoming not just a good drummer, but a legendary jazz drummer. When he crosses paths with the tyrannical professor Terence Fletcher (Simmons), it appears Andrew has met someone who will push him to the heights he is seeking.
The relationship between the two is the crux of the movie, and the pair is electrifying—Simmons in particular as the exacting and intense professor who uses emotional and sometimes physical abuse to push or demean his students. That’s not to discount Teller’s performance, as he must portray an obsession and willingness to push himself to the extremes while also having a vulnerability to Fletcher’s manipulations.
Introducing Damien Chazelle
Damien Chazelle burst onto the scene with this directorial debut which—despite Chazelle also directing another stone-cold classic in La La Land just two years later—many still consider to be his best film. Chazelle’s boundless energy is on full display as he shoots the story with a verve that adds to the intensity of its core duo. That is especially evident in the film’s masterful crescendo that makes the absolute most out of a prolonged drum solo, with close-up cuts to all the beating, pulsing instruments heightening the dramatic climax of the film.
Music as a Sports Movie
Some people have interpreted Whiplash as a sports movie, and you can see why. One detail that has sometimes been criticized is Andrew drumming to the point of bleeding. Is that a real thing? Not really, but does it work for the movie? Hell yeah it does. It is a sports movie, in a sense, following an individual pushing himself to his physical limits to be the very best at his position. Of course, this happens to be through the lens of music and there’s no official competition, but it’s driven by the same spirit.
Likewise, Fletcher’s hardass teacher is very much like a coach or an overbearing father pushing often beyond the limitations of what might be acceptable to try and squeeze greatness out of his star player.
Tragedy and Triumph
One of the questions that has plagued fans of the movie is how to interpret the ending: is it a happy ending or a tragedy?
The answer is simply, yes. What makes Whiplash so delectable is how that rousing final scene closes the arcs for both Nieman and Fletcher. In a certain sense, Nieman steals the power from his abuser and backs him into a corner while showing his prowess on the drums.
But Fletcher also ends up getting exactly what he wants, further affirmation that his cruel, even brutal tactics are simply what is required to turn a prodigy into a legend. And while the scene shows Nieman standing up to Fletcher, it also shows his need for Fletcher’s approval.
Both men are satisfied in that perfect climax, and the film wisely ends with no resolution—we don’t need to see Nieman performing anywhere after this scene, we don’t need to see what the relationship between him and Fletcher looks like. We know that these two are destined to continue their back and forth and Andrew will likely sacrifice many of life’s pleasantries in pursuit of his passion.
That might read to us, the audience, as a tragedy, but for Nieman, it is a fair price in pursuit of his passion.
What Whiplash Means to Us
The first time I watched Whiplash, its finale shook me to my core. I wasn’t just caught in rapt attention. I felt like I was there, developing goosebumps in the audience as protagonist Andrew Neiman delivers his climactic final performance in the film and gives it his all, losing all sense of self to the glory of that moment. It is a desperate, exhilarating sequence, pounding with force and controlled chaos, so much so that it’s only when it ends and you’re left to contend with the comparative silence of the real world as the credits roll that you realise how tragic it is. The entire ending sequence is pitch-perfect, where not a single shot is wasted or misplaced. Luckily, the same is true of the rest of this film. J. K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man film series might be the best use of casting involving the actor, but it is his performance here as Andrew’s brutish instructor that is the crowning jewel in his prolific acting career.
–Cian McGrath
Whiplash is one of the most tense and soul-crushing experiences I’ve ever had in a movie theater. I was attending college at the time, and was in the middle of a full course load as a music major, including major ensembles like the one Andrew is a part of. This experience depicted masterfully by Miles Teller is a very real one, and I was moved by his raw performance of a musical perfectionist stuck in the web of a power-hungry and egotistical professor. J.K. Simmons reminded me so much of my conducting professor that it was genuinely hard to watch at times, and I really have to hand it to the whole cast for taking a very niche experience and making it something gripping for all audiences. To this day, I haven’t seen anything else that even comes close.
–Valerie Morreale
What are your thoughts on Whiplash? Share them with us down in the comments, screenagers!
