Excellent film

Rating: 8/10 (2 May 2015)

At first I feared I couldn't relate to the world of elite jazz musicians at one of America's top music schools. But through the psychopathic teacher Fletcher (JK Simmons) and his protégé, manic young drummer Neiman (Miles Teller) this movie explores issues such as the role of mentors, how far talented and gifted student should be pushed, and push themselves, and just the painful life of a young musician who is quite lost, and who believes that becoming the next Charlie Parker - being someone - is the answer to his problems. When it's pointed out that Parker had a short life of addiction and pain, Neiman says that maybe it's better to have fame and die young than live a long life and be forgotten. It's one of the many nutty but interesting things in this film, which has a great script, tight direction and great acting. It isn't afraid to go over the top, and interestingly, the story continues well after the film's climax, but it works. You get the feeling that many real-life elite artists and their teachers have some sort of mental condition, in pursuing perfection to an extraordinary degree while ignoring their own health and welfare. The scene where Neiman breaks up with his lovely girlfriend, because having a relationship would affect his drumming, is priceless. Ironically music is for pleasure but in the world of Whiplash it's soaked with pain and sacrifice.