Whiplash

It took forever before Sundance favorite Whiplash became available to me. It came out in way-limited release in October and will come to DVD this month. Now that I've seen it in a theater, here's the review.

Andrew Neyman (Miles Teller) is a first year at New York's Shaffer Conservatory school. Andrew wants to be the best Jazz drummer ever. He'll do whatever it takes to be great. And for this reason he makes the mistake of enlisting in Terrence Fletcher's "studio band."

Fletcher (J.K. Simmons) is Shaffer's most highly-regarded music teacher. Fletcher is affable in public but a tyrant during practice. Expect all sorts of physical, verbal and psychological torture when one practices under Fletcher. "It's all about pushing people beyond what's expected of them," Fletcher later says.

Andrew has to practice hard to reach Fletcher's ludicrously high standards. But will he crack before Fletcher's hard exterior does? Probably.

Writer/Director Damien Chazelle previously filmed a portion of the script as a short film. It also wowed Sundance audiences but cost the final film an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay (it's up for Adapted Screenplay instead). Technicality or not, it's still an excellent script. Its dialogue is memorable and the plot moves quickly and effectively.

Andrew's story is an excellent deconstruction of determinism. We want Andrew to succeed but not with great physical and psychological damage; and especially not to please a teacher who changes the goalposts each second. The audience can feel it as he strains under pressure.

J.K. Simmons is a formidable villain as Terrence Fletcher. All Fletcher wants is to drive his students to perfection. You'll earn his respect as long as you reach his high standards. But as the film progresses, and especially at the end, you'll question his good will. He's purely unpredictable and vicious.

Editor Tom Cross keeps the film going at a breakneck speed. The sound designers let you hear each instrument loud and clear. It's appropriate as it lets you feel what Andrew is thinking. You'll feel the tensity in his practice sessions. The final concert is an exercise in rising tension expressed in Jazz.

Whiplash is a pretty brutal movie. Look elsewhere if you want a calmer motion picture. Those who can stand it will be glad they did. It gets its points across with drum-smashing success.