Whiplash

The motion picture Whiplash was a bothersome to watch film. Witnessing the appalling and unnecessary abuse the character suffered from his teacher, Terrence Fletcher, and the sense of loneliness that permeated the movie unnerved me. The movie appeared to have the desire to create discomfort and sympathy for Neiman, by using cinematic techniques to put the audience in his state of mind. One such example was how many scenes contained just the main character, Andrew Neiman, and no other characters, thus the audience begins to feel separated from all the other characters. Another technique was how the movie focused mainly on the musical career of Neiman and leaves little time for the rest of his life, which is similar to how Neiman was portrayed in the movie. This allows the audience to feel the stress Neiman feels as we are shifted between musical practices filled with verbal abuse from Terence Fletcher to scenes of Neiman practicing drumming till his hands bleed. Just like Neiman the audience has no reprieve from frantic practice to horrible beration, thus thrusting the audience into the stressful mindset of the main character. This psychological discord makes those with the toughest constitution flash back to their stressful days of class and long study filled nights, creating even more empathy to Neiman. The abuse Neiman received seems to abate at times, but quickly returned as he gains his position as core drummer then loses it by a whim, meaning the audience is kept on its feet because the story can take a turn at any moment. We as the audience are never truly able to get comfortable as any stable time in Neiman’s life is almost immediately punctuated by bouts of dehumanization that would make most people cringe. Throughout Whiplash we see Neiman’s desire to be a successful drummer only to witness his hopes get dashed to pieces. During times of Neiman’s success the image is brightly lit such as in a cafe or bus ride, but when his hopes are bludgeoned the image turns darker such as an alley at night which subtly leads our emotions to those of Neiman’s. When Neiman encounters those close to him the audience fills with the hope that he could get pardoned from the abuse, but none of his family or associates seem to understand his trials and tribulations causing him to cast them aside. The fast high-paced beat of Fletcher’s orchestra can be felt by the audience through the movie’s use of cuts during musical numbers. When Neiman is thrust into Fletcher’s orchestra the movie cuts back and forth rapidly between different instruments never quite letting the audience focus or calm down. This happens several times throughout the movie, sometimes with this montage of cuts followed up by a highly discomforting conglomerate of cuts containing Neiman rapidly practicing drums till his hands bleed. As the movie progresses his practice montages become more frantic and aggressive, paralleling his descent into anger. One montage contains him replacing bandages on his wounds and shoving his hands into ice water, with one of his final practices showing him smash his drum kit to bits. By having each subsequent montage have more and more rapid cuts we can see how Neiman is drained and pushed to his limits as the film goes on. One such scene I really liked was the movie cross-cutting between Fletcher forcing the three drummers to practice for hours as the other students took a break outside. This montage increased the feeling that the other students truly do not know what Neiman is going through, causing even more sympathy for the protagonist. There is another montage of cuts when Neiman is travelling to the competition before he gets into an argument with Fletcher and when he is travelling back to grab his drumsticks before he is hit by a car. These cuts increase the intensity of the scene as the audience wonders whether Neiman will get back in time, before having his efforts be entirely in vain. Overall these cuts increase the discomfort of the audience by not allowing them to focus during musical scenes and highlighting the unfairness and brutality of Neiman’s treatment. These jump cuts along with scene positioning and lighting changes present a movie that disheartens the audience and forces them into the mindset of its main character, so they feel the distress he felt.