“Whiplash” is a 2014 film featuring the actors Miles Teller playing Andrew Neiman and J.K. Simmons playing Terrence Fletcher. While the film just seems to have a simple concept, a drummer wanting to become the next greatest thing, it goes into a lot of depth and themes of addiction, perfectionism, and the strive to be great. With that in mind, let us dive into the complex mind of Andrew Neiman.
The movie opens up with Neiman practicing his drums and pouring his heart out. That is until Terrence Fletcher enters the room. Neiman tries playing for Fletcher; however, the teacher abruptly leaves. This scene is the start of Neiman’s obsession to prove his worth to Fletcher. Neiman eventually was able to make it to the main band after Fletcher needed a new drummer. Fletcher said Neiman needed to be there at 6 in the morning even though it did not start until because Fletcher just wanted to see how far Neiman was willing to go to make it as a jazz musician, and Neiman did arrive at 6. Neiman saw firsthand how brutal Fletcher was at teaching, shouting and yelling and cussing. When Neiman did not play something good enough, Fletcher slapped him repeatedly and yelled in his face. This caused an obsession from Neiman, who kept pushing himself both physically and mentally to keep going to prove something to Fletcher. It got so bad that when Neiman was in a serious car crash, he still walked away to get to a performance.
After this, Neiman talked with his father and a lawyer where they convinced him to testify against Fletcher, who lost his job because of it. However, Neiman could not resist returning to Fletcher, Neiman decided to go to a performance which could get him a spot somewhere big. However, Fletcher sabotaged Neiman by playing another music piece which Neiman was not expecting. Neiman almost walked out, yet he decided to march back and lead the band into playing another song piece. Fletcher was surprised and yet supported Neiman, finally becoming the big star he had always wanted, and the film cuts to black as Neiman plays a big solo. This is a very short summary, but now let us dive into parts of the movie that really stood out.
One very impactful moment was when Neiman first went to Fletcher’s class. Before Fletcher arrived, everyone was chatting and tuning their instruments. However, when someone gave the signal that Fletcher was gonna be there soon, everyone became a lot quieter and went dead silent once Fletcher entered the room at exactly 9 A.M. Fletcher began practice and everything seemed fine, and Neiman was not playing just yet. However, Fletcher abruptly stopped the entire performance and announced there was an out of tune player and gave them the chance to confess, but no one did. He made every group play until he locked onto one trumpet player.
He asked the player one very simple question, “Do you think you are out of tune?” The player was obviously nervous, not even looking up at Fletcher, and he responded with a very quiet yes. Fletcher in response exploded and kicked the player out, who left barely holding back tears. That was when Fletcher admitted something, “For the record, he wasn’t out of tune. You were, Erikson. But he didn’t know, and that’s bad enough.” They took a small break where Fletcher talked with Neiman, being incredibly nice and polite while getting to know Neiman. This made him seem kind and have a good side, but that changed when Neiman began to play. At first, he was doing a good job with Fletcher complimenting and encouraging him. Then, he stopped Neiman, saying it was not quite his tempo. This happened many times with Fletcher seemingly calm before he abruptly threw a chair at Neiman who barely dodged it. “Why do you suppose I just hurled a chair at your head, Neiman?” That question confused Neiman. Fletcher stomped towards Neiman, making him count up to four and when Neiman reached it, Fletcher slapped him, asking Neiman if he was rushing or dragging the slaps. He shouted at Neiman, insulting him and his parents, using the info he was given against Neiman. This shows the audience many things.
Fletcher is highly manipulative, making someone think they are out of tune and making Neiman gain false hope. He is explosive, going from calm to explosive in rage, being unpredictable and keeping his students on their toes and on alert. The use of colors is also deceiving, the scene has warm yellow and orange colors, colors meant to be warm and welcoming, making people calm and at ease which does not fit a tense scene. This entire moment in the movie is about deception, about giving false hope and comfort which perfectly fits the character of Terrence Fletcher.
Another very important and memorable moment is Neiman’s growing obsession with pleasing Fletcher. The first thing we must understand about Neiman is his parents. His mother was not even in his life, leaving him and his dad. His dad is a pushover, a high school teacher, and a mediocre author. Someone who is satisfied with his unsatisfiable life, something Neiman despises. Neiman pushes himself after his first session with Fletcher, pushing so far that his hands were bleeding profusely, and he had to dump his fist into a big glass of iced water.
After a good performance, he was made first seat and at dinner he shared this with his family who did not seem to fully understand it or care much, being more focused on his cousins who played low ranking football. He had new confidence and began talking back, saying that his cousins’ accomplishments were nothing compared to pro footballers. When his father pointed out that a lot of good musicians died young, Neiman responded with, “I’d rather die drunk, broke, at 34 for people to talk about me at a dinner table than to live rich, sober at 90 but no one talks about me.”
This single line shows how much Neiman wants, how much fame and stardom he craves. He is surrounded by people who are okay with the flaws of their lives, but Neiman is not. It was Fletcher who awakened that drive, before he was a shy, awkward kid, kind of like his father. Fletcher changed him, awakened that drive to be something better, to be remembered and iconic. That drive is with him the entire movie, willing to sacrifice anything to be remembered. He ruined his relationships with his family, broke up with a girl he liked, and he even began sleeping in the practice room because it took too long to walk over there, and he did not want to waste time. His obsession was like a drug. Sure he tried getting away for a time, but he came crawling back.
Whiplash is a cautionary tale about how someone loses everything to be great. People focus on the more inspiring strive for greatness, not considering what people must sacrifice in order to be great. Whiplash shows this perfectly as Neiman slowly loses himself to this obsession and addiction. So, I’ll leave this off with one question: how far will you go for greatness?
