Review of Whiplash (2014) by Kevin L — 26 Dec 2015

For the first 3/4 of this movie you feel you're in a familiar place- a demanding mentor pushing the limits of the aspiring student to the point of point-break & even at times cruelty-but there's a method to the teacher's madness as it reveals later. Sound familiar? It's a common theme if you've watched enough martial arts films growing up as a kid or even watched the Karate Kid movie - e.g. the relationship between Mr. Miagi & Daniel-san. I was along for the ride but wasn't drawn into it thinking it's another trope with Jazz & drum sticks (instead of punches & round-house kicks). Even when the two characters meet months later as the movie is winding up, I was thinking "sure, let's humanize the teacher here, he'll say a few good lines, let's roll the closing credits...". Then I was shown the real soul of the movie with real refreshing take on screen-play and story-telling.

When the movie ended at an exhilarating finish, I fully appreciated the mis-direction and the intentional ambiguity the director & screen-writer had woven into the film. The true intentions of the teacher is certainly ambitious where I had to ask a friend what he thought it was-sure enough we had different views on it. Good films have a habit of having these effects on the audience. For sure it was the best film of 2014, and a definite classic for years to come.