Anyone seen "Whiplash"?

[boomboomdrums]

Any of yall seen the new movie "Whiplash"?

 

I must say I'm a little surprised that a major motion picture comes out and has been out a few weeks with the hero being a Jazz drummer and seen nothing on here about it yet.

 

I watched it on pay per view Friday night and have to say it was pretty good.

 

I decided I wanted to see it when I saw a clip advertising it where the director was yelling at the drummer, "were you rushing or dragging?" After having lived that scenario a few times I knew I had to see it. Having played in jazz big bands too persuaded me.

 

I anticipated there would be things that were just dumb when it comes to the drumming aspect and am glad to say there were only a couple of things.

 

There is some good big band drumming it. There also some good inside drumming/musical stuff that musicians would get but not everyone else which is kindof cool.

 

All in all I would say it was a good movie. It is worth seeing IMHO.

 

Would be interested to hear what others think.

[twosticks]

I had seen the trailer for it too around last Christmas or this past Jan. and saw where it was in limited release and then forgot about it. I too was like you and from the review I read he had a love interest so I thought it would be more Hollywood crap. Thanks for the heads up!

[Dendy Jarrett]

I saw it and I actually liked it. The fight reminded me of how difficult and hyper critical we are as a society. I had a drum instructor in Drum Corps that pushed us like the guy in the movie, but we remain great friends to this day. He only pushed us knowing what we were capable of ...

If you are a drummer, it is a must see just for the drumming. D

[rayboomboom]

I saw it also and did like it. I too found there was only a few things that weren't quite real: the performance scene when the instructor pulled out a tune the drummer didn't know. I was yelling at the tv, "JUST PLAY TIME, STOP ALL THE FILLS!!!" That, and the bleeding hands thing when he's trying - too hard - to play faster. LOOSEN UP DUDE!!

 

Really good story and great acting. J.K. Simmons won a grammy for that! I like Miles Teller also, who was already a drummer I understand. A must see for anyone.

[1001gear]

I watched trailer. I had heard of those DI tyrant types; very expensive conservatory faculty, Toscanini etc. but never gave it much thought. I suppose for true artists, impeccability is fundamental - my only conclusion about that. As far as the movie, the drumming was underwhelming

[WhiplashBand]

And here I thought someone was missing me with this thread LOL

 

I bought the movie the day it came out and loved it. JK Simmons was fantastic and I was very pleased with Teller's acting and performances. It was so refreshing to see musical sequences in a movie when the playing was right. Nothing aggravates me more than seeing a "band" in a movie and it seems nobody even tries to mime correctly, or even close to being correct. Makes me nuts.

[FitchFY]

I really enjoyed the movie for what it was: a Hollywood-ized, overly-dramatic version of what an obsessive student could experience when dealing with a psychotic instructor. The movie was INTENSE... I have no desire to see it a second time, but I really found it well done.

 

As mentioned, this was a movie, so there's glaring moments of non-reality. The biggest, to me, was that there's no expression of joy in this film whatsoever: no one is enjoying making music, which is what it's all about. Again, though, this isn't meant to be reality.

 

I found the drumming and music awesome, and I always liked Myles Teller after seeing 21 & Over, so seeing him in such a dramatic role was cool.

 

It DID give me some flashback-esque moments to some band moments growing up, though!

[Eric Behrenfeld]

I really liked this movie a lot, and recommend it! I thought it was very realistic and well thought out about what it takes to be a musician, especially a drummer. I had many similar things happen to me as a drummer, they really did a great job with the writing of the script. It is believable, over the top no doubt, but believable and the movie went beyond my expectations. I've had blood on my snare drum let's just say!

 

So let me tell a quick story about "tempo", one of the HARSH issues in the movie.

 

I was in a band that insisted that the tempo be EXACT, and of course, I was held solely responsible for it. After weeks and weeks of constant nagging at rehearsals, I told the band that my time was accurate and THEY were the tempo feel problem, not me. The singer and guitarist were constantly questioning the tempo time, so I brought in a digital tempo timer that reacted to my every snare hit, which I use for my drum students, showing them the tempo at the lesson. I actually turned the digital readout screen around for them to see at one rehearsal, so they could see the read out, and I could not see it. After I nailed the tempo time, THAT no longer was an issue, thank you Saint Thomas!

[Eric Behrenfeld]

[mbengs1]

I've seem whiplash. very interesting how they show music school. i guess thats how it really is? the teacher got mad too much.

[1001gear]

The more exclusive the school the more stringent the expectations. That said, most adult education is conducted in a mostly civil manner. You are presented with the challenges of the curriculum and it is your responsibility to meet or exceed them. The teacher student relationships can break down to normal human nature. Likeable considerate faculty are not uncommon but by and large no one is going to hold your hand or give you the info up front. A professional has to be able to think and figure for himself. This trait doesn't come from a day care environment.