If you've read my last film review you'll know that I have become a fast fan of Odeon's latest film experience Screen Unseen. The monthly event gives film fans the opportunity to see a much anticipated film before its general release date. There's only one catch: the audience has no idea what film they're going to see until the opening credits start rolling. I was really impressed with last month's film, and I think that Odeon have again picked something really special.
I hadn't heard of Whiplash before I went to Screen Unseen. When I first saw the title of the film I felt a bit dubious. Was it about a horse rider? Something sexy to compete with Fifty Shades of Grey? Or was it about a failed insurance scam? The answer? None of the above. In fact, Whiplash is about jazz. When I first realised it was a film about an aspiring jazz musician I felt even more dubious.I just wasn't sure it was going to be my thing. Especially when I realised the plot seemed focused around a super motivated student and his relationship with a much respected musician and conductor. But I really needn't have worried. Whiplash is really nothing like other will-they-or-won't-they-succeed feel good films. And it's brilliant.
Andrew (Miles Teller) is the super focused drummer hoping to win the approval, and a place in the jazz band, of industry superstar Fletcher (J. K. Simmons). Andrew has a focus and passion for jazz that is beyond what would be expected of someone of his age. His walls are covered in posters of jazz greats, he seems to rarely socialise with anyone near to his age, and the most extracurricular fun he has revolves around cinema trips with his dad. It is clear from the start that Andrew has a passion. But the depth of his passion is only revealed as the film progresses. When Fletcher picks up Andrew to initially be second chair drummer in his band, Andrew is thrilled. This is the break he's been waiting for. But it soon becomes clear that Fletcher has a very unique way of working. During Andrew's first rehearsal alone he has a chair flung at his head, is made to cry, and is generally humiliated, by Fletcher. But Andrew somehow responds to this extreme method and overhauls his life to focus on becoming a great in the jazz world. Cue seriously disturbing and somehow sensual scenes of bloodied hands, cymbals shimmering with sweat, and grimaces of genuine pain etching Andrew's face as he tries to learn Fletcher's music and match his tempo. The film is really a series of ups and downs as we see Andrew struggle to progress in his career. And the end is truly startling.
Whiplash does something I've never really seen in a film before, and the closest comparison I can make is to Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman as an ambitious ballet dancer. Both films, although different, are able to inject very real tension and grit into industries that are often portrayed as quite wholesome and mellow. I hadn't expected to feel so emotionally invested in a film about the world of jazz - a genre I've never listened to much. Andrew's lust for success is as sexy as it is harrowing. It is more thrilling than a high budget blockbuster and far scarier than most horrors I've seen. Andrew and Fletcher's relationship is fascinating and extremely hard to define. Simmons does a brilliant job as Fletcher, he is cruel, extreme and completely unreadable. I was never able to fully understand whether he truly believed in Andrew, or whether he even wanted him to succeed. Teller is just as fantastic and plays a believably desperate student, who will stop at nothing to be the best - even with Fletcher clinging to his ankles.
Whiplash is really so much more than a film about a jazz band. It is about the human need to mean something, to achieve something, and the sometimes ugly nature of competition. More than that, it is a film that questions motivation and ponders an alternative way of nurturing talent. It is filled with beautiful, and often darkly humorous, dialogue and shows a side of the cut throat music industry that isn't often explored. Go and find it. It's out in cinemas early next year.
Would you go to a Screen Unseen event? Do you like the sound of Whiplash?
