Whiplash (2014) was a difficult movie to watch. I find myself hoping that this world driven by high-level stress, intimidation, and discrimination would never exist. The cast and crew did some serious work in illustrating this level of frustration and unpredictability.
The movie features a story of a young and aspiring jazz drummer at a fictional prestigious conservatory called Shaeffer Conservatory, who interacts a private teacher that tries to make his life as a drummer extremely difficult. The two become involved in a very strange relationship tied with the desire for success and the obsession with music-making. The movie stars Miles Teller as Andrew Neyman, the drummer; and J.K. Simmons as Terence Fletcher, the terrifying teacher.
Terence Fletcher, the director of the topmost band at the prestigious Shaeffer Conservatory in New York City, is a mysterious character. We never know what he could actually be thinking. He yells a lot, but sometimes he can be affirming, too. He occasionally smiles or even shows tears, but those emotions feel fake because of horrid actions he takes to “get the most out of the musicians.” It was terrifying to see. Fletcher used multiple homophobic, sexist, racist, ageist, and demeaning comments in general to his band members, exercising power harassment. And to think the next Charlie Parker can, or has to, survive all of these oppressions to get to the top, to build thicker skins? I’m glad I’m not at Shaeffer.
This movie also shows how male-dominated the jazz world is. There were exactly two female players in the entire movie. Just two, out of dozens. One was in the lower-level jazz combo, and she messes up her solo quite more than her male counterparts when Fletcher comes to observe. Another was not given much airtime. Is this really how females are regarded? If the directors like Fletcher actually exist, there is no way female players can thrive — with no regard to their ability as a player. It’s one thing to be extremely strict and unyielding; it’s another to be discriminatory and threatening.
The terrible leadership of Fletcher is not to say the well-written plot and stellar acting should go uncredited. I felt like I was on a roller coaster all the way; I could never expect how a scene would turn out, and it was thrilling. Miles Teller acted out the agony of wanting to become the best and please Fletcher so realistically; J.K. Simmons fit into the role of stubborn and unpredictable director perfectly. Not to mention, the music they played were high quality — living up to the name of the nation’s top conservatory. The amount of cursing and violence was a little out of my taste, but I guess that’s why the movie is rated R.
In a nutshell, Whiplash is a movie worth watching — but not for everyone. The scenes can get pretty graphic with blood, violence, and verbal abuse. You don’t have to be a music student to appreciate this movie, either, because this movie is more about life than about music. If you have some free time before you feast on those Thanksgiving dinners, check it out at the State Theater.
