Electrifying film, electrifying message?

Rating: 8/10 (30 November 2016)

I wanted to watch Whiplash for quite a while now and now that I finally managed to, I'm not really sure what to think of it.
It is without any doubt a movie of great beauty concerning the astonishing acting as well as the thoroughful production. You easily get drawn into the plot, you can relate to the pressure and the decisions made throughout the film. All in all it is a movie that will most definitely move a vast majority of its audience.
What leaves me thinking is the message. Is it really necessary to de-humanize people to help them achieve greatness? When I look at modern-day sports and music, it indeed tends to be the case that being satisfied with yourself is a status not favorable. It seems that at one point you have to choose between being successful and being yourself. In the end of this film we see a young man, for whom no one is more important than himself. Who is incapable of leading a relationship or respecting others as humans. And yet the end of the film gives you the impression that this is worth it, that only through that harsh treatment and self-destruction he could achieve greatness. And this shouldn't be what we're teaching people.