Whiplash (2014)

[baumer]

Discuss

[baumer]

Going today!

[Jake Gittes]

It's terrific. A conflict between teacher and student in a music school written, directed and edited as a thriller is a neat idea and it's fully developed and realized here. Fine character work (Teller isn't afraid to be a total jerk at times, Simmons is far from a one-dimensional monster) and the most powerful and emotionally draining ending of the year. Damien Chazelle is going to have a bright future. 

Edited November 18, 2014 by Jake Gittes

[baumer]

Fucking loved it.  I didn't think Teller was a jerk at all.  He was driven and literally gave blood sweat and tears to get what he wanted.  I don't think he will be nominated this year but he gives one of the best physical performances in a film I've ever seen.  He owns this character and as Gittes mentioned, the ending drained me but it also made me cheer.  

 

Simmons is awesome and just when you think the script is going to go the way most scripts would, they literally say fuck you and go the complete different direction.  That's what makes the film so satisfying.  I absolutely love this film and it will make my top ten of the year, maybe even top five.

 

9.5/10

[Jake Gittes]

I didn't think Teller was a jerk at all.  He was driven and literally gave blood sweat and tears to get what he wanted. 

 

Those aren't mutually exclusive. After a certain point he was ready to blow up at anyone who stood in his way, and when he broke up with his girlfriend he did it in a grade-A assholish way. It's part of the point, his pursuit of greatness is so aggressively single-minded he's willing to not just give his blood, sweat and tears, but also step over other people if needed. 

Edited November 19, 2014 by Jake Gittes

[Kvikk Lunsj]

I really liked the movie, the acting was great and the charters were well written. The movie is well edited and directed. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. 

3.5/5

[baumer]

Those aren't mutually exclusive. After a certain point he was ready to blow up at anyone who stood in his way, and when he broke up with his girlfriend he did it in a grade-A assholish way. It's part of the point, his pursuit of greatness is so aggressively single-minded he's willing to not just give his blood, sweat and tears, but also step over other people if needed. 

 

Again, I don't think he was an asshole to her.  He is honest, 100% honest.  He cut it off before she got too emotionally invested in him and it worked out well for her as she found another boyfriend.  I thought that scene was terrific.  And the blow up at the dinner table was painful but it was also honest.  He was being ignored even though his accomplishments were much greater than the other two but the emphasis that is placed on sports in our society is at times way too much.  So when the entire table was adulating these two and ignoring him, sure he lashed out but in a way, it was needed.  So imo, he was not a jerk

[Jake Gittes]

Again, I don't think he was an asshole to her.  He is honest, 100% honest.  He cut it off before she got too emotionally invested in him and it worked out well for her as she found another boyfriend.  

 

He had no idea how their relationship would progress, but had the audacity to assume that she was better off without him even though he hadn't given her any chance to speak. It doesn't matter how accurate his predictions were - in that scene, he's the guy who thinks he's being rational but really he just talks down to her in a fashion that's both deeply condescending and cowardly. Notice how quickly he delivers his big speech - he's afraid of any reply she could squeeze in, he doesn't want her to have any agency at all.

 

It basically plays like a variation on the opening scene of The Social Network, a film Chazelle has said he's a fan of. Had the girl ended the conversation with "You're going to go through life thinking that girls don't like you because you're an obsessed jazz musician. And I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that that won't be true. It'll be because you're an asshole", it would have been entirely fitting.

[Jake Gittes]

He was being ignored even though his accomplishments were much greater than the other two but the emphasis that is placed on sports in our society is at times way too much.  So when the entire table was adulating these two and ignoring him, sure he lashed out but in a way, it was needed.  

 

I don't disagree, but there's an irony in the film (and especially in that scene) in the fact that, no matter how many times Teller mentions Charlie Parker or Buddy Rich, there's no drummer in the world today who is at anywhere near the same level of fame. (Or is there?) And it's highly unlikely Teller is realistically gonna rise to that level. He wins the battle at the end, but I still feel like he's going to lose the war. So when he lashes out at the table I think it's partly because he understands that, no matter how talented he is, the general public will always overlook a guy like him in favor of guys playing sports. Or maybe I'm just overthinking this and bringing by personal cynicism into the world of the movie, I'm not sure. 

[baumer]

He had no idea how their relationship would progress, but had the audacity to assume that she was better off without him even though he hadn't given her any chance to speak. It doesn't matter how accurate his predictions were - in that scene, he's the guy who thinks he's being rational but really he just talks down to her in a fashion that's both deeply condescending and cowardly. Notice how quickly he delivers his big speech - he's afraid of any reply she could squeeze in, he doesn't want her to have any agency at all.

 

It basically plays like a variation on the opening scene of The Social Network, a film Chazelle has said he's a fan of. Had the girl ended the conversation with "You're going to go through life thinking that girls don't like you because you're an obsessed jazz musician. And I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that that won't be true. It'll be because you're an asshole", it would have been entirely fitting.

 

Well, I think you make a good point but I still disagree with it.  Relationships sometimes are predictable.  In this case, I think his would have been exactly the way he said it would be.

[Jake Gittes]

I mean, it would've been fine if he tried to get out of a relationship by flat-out saying he didn't want a relationship at this stage of his life because of this and that. Instead, he's trying to fit the girl into his own preconceived notion of a put-upon, suffering girlfriend in the making, while making himself out to be a victim at the same time ("I'm so obsessed with music I can't even allow myself to have a relationship with you!"). It's pretty insulting, I think. 

[JohnnyGossamer]

Can't wait to see this one. Playing close enough that I should catch it this weekend.

 

Pushed a good one away when I was younger (very early 20s) due to working film related, not music, projects. I was hopelessly obsessed. When the obsession died down, I realized I may've made a mistake... She was pretty special. Probably could've had both or at least just her. But, no regrets. No one since seems to get me like she did though. As they say, ob-la-di, ob-la-da...

 

Again, can't wait to see this movie. I like what I'm hearing about it.

Edited November 19, 2014 by JohnnyGossamer

[Kvikk Lunsj]

I do like how school were the one guy does exist. I wounder why they chose Carlton College.

Edited November 19, 2014 by Snoopy of Suburbia

[acsc1312]

Holy shit this was incredible. Simmons gives a terrifying supporting performance and teller shines as usual. That ending was so tense. This is definitely in my top 3 for the year

A

[Jake Gittes]

Holy shit this was incredible. Simmons gives a terrifying supporting performance and teller shines as usual. That ending was so tense. This is definitely in my top 3 for the year

A

 

Good review, but not quite my tempo. 

[baumer]

Good review, but not quite my tempo. 

 

[Gopher]

It's a good movie--especially for a feature-film writing/directing debut--but I'm not crazy about it. 

 

I think the ending is where the movie really gets going, so I'm kind of frustrated that the film spun its wheels for so long. It's a ton of fun watching Simmons wise-crack and deceive Teller (who is also very good in this film), but they're playing the same note for so much of the film that the more interesting story to me is what happens *after* Simmons' work pays off and Teller becomes this incredible musician. 

[Jake Gittes]

It's actually the second film Chazelle's directed and the third one he's written.

 

I wouldn't say the movie is spinning its wheels at all. As a story that establishes two driven characters and proceeds to test them in order to figure out exactly how far they are willing to go, I think it's intense throughout, just building, building and building before it finally explodes. Anything that happens after the ending is part of another story, really. 

[Cmasterclay]

Best movie of the year. An absolute fucking masterpiece.

[Ezen Baklattan]

I can't remember the last time my blood moved this quickly when I saw a movie. This was batshit insane, like THE KARATE KID meets BLACK SWAN on steroids. Watching Andrew pushed towards his goal was both triumphant and painful. While it was clear that he had the talent to be truly amazing, especially with Fletcher's unconventional methods of help, he had basically sacrificed his own humanity to pursue his dream. Fletcher wasn't truly mean, he just had an extreme view on drive and determination that Andrew readily ate up, and while it seemed that he finally delivered in the end, Andrew's finale was not without subtle tragedy. It raises questions on determination in life without settling for easy answers and letting each side have its own humanity. It ultimately leaves its message up to you.

 

Truly a fantastic film, and Simmons better fucking get nominated.