Whiplash is a relatively new music movie following a young drummer who pushes himself to the limits, along with the help of a very abusive teacher, to reach his dream of becoming one of the greats. Whiplash is quite a famous music movie and as a drummer myself, I have been asked a thousand times if I have seen the movie. So now that I have finally seen the movie, I can finally answer the age-old question: "have you seen Whiplash?"

Before I start this review, I am going to say a disclaimer. As some of you might know, I am a drummer. Therefore, this review will be looked at through a particular lens in that I actually know what I'm talking about. :)

But anyway, let's start today's review by praising the movie: the acting in Whiplash was incredible. The movie was fiercely realistic (and at times frighteningly realistic) and the actors only added to this sense of realism. Props especially go to J.K. Simmons for his portrayal of antagonist Fletcher whose authenticity is so dramatic, I wouldn't be surprised if the musicians had to do any acting and their reactions were their raw emotions. I also have to mention Miles Teller who played the role of the protagonist in the film. His acting was similarly astonishing, however, I do have to discuss his drumming. If you read articles online, they will say that the director revealed that Teller did "99 percent of the drumming". From what I can tell from watching the movie once, I'm going to say that this isn't true. I'd say that 99 percent of what we are hearing in the movie isn't Teller's drumming. I'd assume that someone else's drumming was dubbed over Teller's playing. This is quite obvious to me... as a drummer. But then again, this wouldn't be very obvious to the average viewer and I think that Teller certainly was playing the drums, just not the drums we were hearing. So, well done to him and the director and editors for making it seem like he was playing the drums.

This brings me to my next point about how realistic the movie was from a musician's perspective. The movie is very dramatised. In comparison to other music movies though, Whiplash is fairly realistic and somewhat accurate. However, it always seems to take everything a few steps too far for 'entertainment'.

Whiplash does a good job at promoting drummers as being these people who won't stop at anything to reach their dreams. On the other hand, it doesn't promote drumming itself and doesn't make the viewer want to go off and play the drums. It could also be quite discouraging for aspiring drummers (or aspiring drummers' mums). However, I can assure those aspiring drummers and their protective parents that the bleeding whilst playing the drums and having chairs thrown at you for not getting the timing right are some of the most extreme aspects of the movie. And if either of these things are happening to you then it's time to hold the stick properly and get a new teacher.

Whiplash is a really good movie. As I've said earlier, the acting, realism, direction, editing and the (somewhat) accurate depiction of drumming make the film quite a work of art. However, all these aspects do not make the movie enjoyable. I found it an interesting film to watch, however, I didn't take pleasure in watching the movie. It isn't at all uplifting and had a real lack of likeable characters.

Whiplash is not the movie you'll want to be watching for an encouraging and inspiring evening. However, it is an incredible movie and can be appreciated for that. It sparks some interesting conversations and teaches an important lesson about following your dreams. I also don't mind how it depicts drummers as some kind of superhuman and I quite enjoy people coming up to me and saying: "wow, I didn't realise your job was so hard."

Director: Damien Chazelle

Starring: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Paul Reiser, Melissa Benoist

Year released: 2014

My rating: 7/10

Review by Tristan Carr

Last edited: 04/09/2022