Why Whiplash should terrify us
"There are no two words more harmful than the word 'good job"
"I was there to push people of what's expected from them. I believe it is the absolute necessity."
-Terence Fletcher
A story that explodes with anger and ambition through abuse and mockery is justified through the cost of being successful.
Andrew being tortured by Fletcher for failing to
play on time.
The acclaimed 2014 film marks the beginning of the careers of Miles Teller, Terence Fletcher as well as writer-director Damien Chazelle in his next big, nasty, mean, and ambitious film Whiplash. Whiplash asks the very question that is universal and timeless; What does it take to strive for greatness? What happens if someone was driven to practice and practice until his hands bleed until he perfects it? Can this intensity be brought out from us, what will happen as a result of his determination? Whiplash portrays a young sophomore practicing drumming in the Shaffer Conservatory with the dream to become one of the greatest jazz musicians to have ever lived. However, the film does not enable our young protagonist to achieve that dream easily as obstacles and powerful challenges stand in his way. Taking the form of an abusive, unforgiving, and villainous maestro of the jazz band in the Shaffer Conservatory none other than Terence Fletcher himself, the film ultimately vindicates his brutal actions in the last scene.
The passion for success can be ultimately destructive.
Neiman practicing and practicing until he perfects
his drumming
Whiplash takes the formulaic underdog story of success and flips it over its head. Damien Chazelle manages to take the dying coming-of-age story about success and transforms it into a 'psychological drama movie. From the beginning of the movie, we see our protagonist Andrew practicing his drumming which attracts the attention of the unrelenting bandleader, Fletcher. Although Fletcher has taken a keen interest in Andrew, he does not immediately decide to take him under his wing because he wants Andrew to prove himself worthy. By being worthy, Andrew must practice even harder. This eventually leads to having personalities clash, monologues being delivered and frustration ensues.
Due to Fletcher's abuse and influence, Andrew becomes a complete jerk who will stop at nothing to achieve success for himself which leads to him destroying his personal life and himself. Thus, the film also addresses another message; hope. Hope for being successful is what drives Andrew to achieve success but at the same time, it sucks the life out of him as he continues to push himself even harder. This is shown after Fletcher psychologically beats Andrew down to a pulp for failing to keep in tempo, Andrew trains harder than ever to never be embarrassed ever again which causes his hands to bleed as a result of trying too hard. Despite all that, he continues to practice, and practice that pays off in the last scene of the movie. There comes a price for this, Director Damien Chazelle originally wanted to leave a post-credits scene for the film to show that Andrew has descended into drug addiction which has been foreshadowed during the philosophical dinner scene where Andrew claims that he rather die drunk at the age of 34 but have people talking about him at the dinner table instead of living a life luxury. This proves my point that no matter how high our hopes are for our dreams, we can never truly embrace it because the outcome is never satisfying. It will suck us dry until we can no longer have the strength to even muster our own breath.
Young talent vs experience
Fletcher harassing and berating his students for
being 'out of tune'
Everyone has encountered an intimidating figure of authority in the form of a teacher, coach, or employer. They may abuse their power or psychologically embarrass you, which can have a serious effect on your behavior and performance. This is exactly what Fletcher enjoys doing to his students by getting under their skin and into their brains to force their talents out of them. While it may be effective to make his students work harder such as berating and throwing chairs at his students if they make a single mistake in playing their instruments. The forces of antagonism by Fletcher can have a serious effect to their sanity causing them to act like complete jerks. Andrew meets Fletcher's expectations and refuses to be bossed around. The Andrew vs Fletcher conflict provides the film's best scenes, and the way their relationship progresses throughout the film is compelling.
"Are you a rusher or are you a dragger..OR ARE YOU GONNA BE ON MY FUCKING TIMEEEE!!!!!"
"If YOU DELIBERATELY SABOTAGE MY BAND, I WILL FUCK YOU LIKE A PIG!!"
"NOT QUITE MY TEMPO"
-Terence Fletcher abusing Andrew for being out of tempo
Such compelling arguments can only rise through convincing acting. Miles Teller, as Andrew is, fortunately, Whiplash's strongest asset. He conveys so much emotion without sounding like a whiny baby or a complete asshole. Despite becoming an asshole in the later parts of the film, it is very convincing because the audience has generated enough sympathy for the young man to understand where he is coming from. This also further elevates the tension and story to new heights during the film's explosive, intense moments. Additionally, the fact that Teller practiced up to three hours a day for two months in preparation for the role certainly paid off. This also captivates the audience to see Andrew succeed because they are aware of who is playing the drums behind the scenes.
While Teller is amazing, we must not forget about the star of the show, J.K Simmons as Terence Fletcher. Simmons absolutely knocks it out of the park by giving an Oscar-worthy performance of a lifetime. He is cruel, unrelenting, and terrifying to watch when he appears on the screen. My favorite scene with Fletcher was when he first arrived at class at 9:00am sharp. There was nothing but a pin-drop silence in the room which quickly establishes Fletcher as an intimidating figure to look at. Simmons has not even said a word and has already earned the respect of his pupils before slowly revealing his dominance to a poor student who believes he was out of tune in class. However, despite all the mean and hurtful things he said to Andrew, we then enter Fletcher's state of mind and we understand where he is also coming from. He is willing to sacrifice what he deems as unnecessary to his life in order to pursue his passions in music and as a conductor. Thus, Fletcher is uttermost, very compelling to watch looking back at his earlier scenes where he tortures his students. Each scene with Fletcher is engrossing and awe-inspiring, reminding the audience of the late Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight as he continuously pushes and demotes his students for the sake of becoming the next Charlie Parker. In my opinion, he truly deserves the Oscar award for Best Supporting Actor.
Be who you wish to be
Do not allow the pressure of meeting someone's expectations to be what you strive to achieve. It is hopeless and pointless to do so because, in the end, that person will always put you down no matter how much you try. Whiplash presents the effects of this societal pressure on high-achieving individuals. This is something that many of us can relate to - the fear of being average. Do you accept mediocrity, or do you strive to escape it?
Whiplash does not answer the question of should we try to be perfect in the eyes of society to become great? However, this may not come true to most people. All-time greats also suffered like Andrew as a result of striving to be perfect and idolized in almost every aspect. Micheal Jackson suffered from anxiety and depression due to his fear of not being accepted in a society which caused him to bleach his skin and undergo plastic surgery to become loved which inevitably lead to his downfall. While Andrew has been through a lot of challenges prepared by his villainous maestro, he eventually overcame all of them, gaining the respect of Fletcher by the end of the film. The final act of the film provides some of the most electrifying and intense endings that are tightly structured and carefully created. Director Damien Chazelle managed to bring the 'WOW" moment out of the audience once again as the Andrew vs Fletcher conflict has reached its peak, it is a triumphant and soulful moment for Andrew as he finally outwits and overcomes Fletcher by not playing by his rules.
While it is clear that Andrew becomes Fletcher's equal, he never truly won the war against Fletcher, the engrossing and awe-inspiring performance from Andrew was based on Fletcher's torture and abuse which once again vindicates that Fletcher's ideology of being great requires pushing themselves to their limits. Although the film does explicitly claim that violence and abuse are what everyone needs to become more of what is expected from them, it is trying to send a message about abuse and suffering. Figures of authority should not abuse their power over young students for their faults, nobody is perfect and nobody should ever try to be. They may not know what that student is going through in their lives. There may be a chance the student will end up committing suicide as done by Sean Casey, a former student of Shaffer and was under Fletcher's guidance. Hence, we cannot succumb to the forces of antagonism and peer pressure to know our faults, everyone has a chance to be who they decide to be and who will be the guidance in life.
Electrifying ending that brings the catharsis to the
Andrew vs Fletcher conflict
No comments:
Post a Comment