The Consequence of Ambition

Rating: 10/10 (23 January 2015)

Chazelle delicately directs the film to have that sense of crisp and sound – one that's quite hard to find nowadays. He magically transforms violent and abusive scenes into something extremely watchable without dismissing pity. There is never a camera angle that is out of place, no wasted detail in its frames. This is one film that can teach LES MISERABLES (2012) Director, Tom Hooper, how to effectively use extreme close ups, without having to waste pure emotions and sheer talent.
WHIPLASH presents a decent, yet violent argument that exalts the student and polarizes the discipline. This is a story where the teacher simply becomes the tool to the artist's journey to becoming what he really is. Or may be not. At some point, the teacher becomes a separate entity in the learning experience. At some point, the teacher has ambitions of his own, far detached from what his own learners think and dream. At some point, the teacher finds his learners as his competitors in the race to greatness.
It's an absurd tragedy, though still arguably triumphant on its own.
What WHIPLASH argues is that beyond learning lies a greater and more painful path to ambition, and to get there, one does not need anyone but himself. It is a story that challenges the collaborative norm in education. It is an anti-social thesis on refinement and discipline, yet it is still something worth looking into. It does not give you that moral lesson that you are waiting for. Amidst the loud, energetic sounds of Andrew's sweaty, bloody, jazz drum set, it whispers to you that the road to glory is made of brimstones from hell.