Whiplash (2014)
Whiplash
By Emily Hubbard
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- Directed by: Damien Chazelle
- Starring: Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons
- Where to find it: Sky Cinema/Now TV
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Whiplash. Defined as ‘to jolt suddenly, typically to cause
injury’, it’s a feeling you’re left with after viewing this breath-taking piece
of cinema, directed by Damien Chazelle. The film starts and ends in the same
way, with our protagonist playing the drums, however, the events that take
place between these scenes create some of the most exhilarating 107 minutes in
modern-day cinema.
Let’s get things straight, although classed as a drama,
Whiplash is almost certainly more of a thriller, and a truly terrific one at
that, with its final 15 minutes being arguably more anxiety-inducing than many
greats of the genre. It’s safe to say that Chazelle has done the seemingly
impossible by creating a film about a jazz drummer that will have you on the
edge of your seat, unable to take your eyes away from what is transpiring in
front of you. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, however, as Chazelle’s other
work includes writing credits on 10 Cloverfield Lane, and perhaps more notably,
writing, and directorial credits on the (almost) Best Picture, La La Land.
Starring Miles Teller as Andrew, a jazz drummer enrolled at the
prestigious Shaffer Conservatory, Whiplash centres around his artistic ambition
and his student/teacher relationship with abusive band leader Terrance Fletcher
(J.K. Simmons). With the latter of the two men pushing the other to his limits,
in increasingly violent ways. At a glance, Whiplash is a movie about musicians,
but at its core, it's an enthralling character study focusing on the fine line
between perfection and obsession.
Although the film is laden with Oscar-worthy directorial choices
and sound mixing, there are other elements at play that make this film an instant classic, with its two leads Miles Teller and J.K. Simmons giving
arguably career-best performances. Teller’s portrayal of a young, talented drummer
whose obsession with becoming ‘one of the greats’ and impressing his so-called
mentor is as heart-breaking as it is frustrating, showing just how far people
will go to achieve validation. Teller brings a passion to the role that is shown
in multiple, almost uncomfortable, shots of him playing the drums for so long
that he forms blisters on his hands and bleeds all over his drum kit. Teller also
gives a great performance where he attempts to perform after being involved in
a car-crash moment prior, in a scene that makes you think just how far is too
far in the search for perfection?
Despite Teller’s stellar performance, it’s J.K. Simmons who
really shines in this film though, through his portrayal as Andrew’s abusive, violent,
and downright terrifying band leader Terrance Fletcher. So good is Simmons’ performance
that it still induces fear in me whenever I rewatch this film (and trust me, I’ve
rewatched this film many times). A stand-out scene of the movie involves
Fletcher crying whilst informing his current students about the untimely death
of a former student. This is an uncharacteristic scene for Simmons’ character,
and it almost makes you feel empathy towards him, that is until immediately following
his outpouring of emotion, he forces his students to play the drums until their
hands bleed all whilst verbally attacking them. Just to give you an idea of how
great his performance is, J.K. Simmons won an Oscar and 39 other awards for
this film.
One of the most notable, and quotable, lines from the film
comes from Simmons’ Fletcher when he proclaims, ‘There are no two words in the
English language more harmful than ‘good job’’. Damien Chazelle didn’t do a
good job with Whiplash; he did an astounding one.
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