The three time Oscar winning “Whiplash” is a slow burn drama centering on obsession spiraling towards insanity and severe psychological angst.

Andrew Neiman (Miles Teller) is a driven young drummer struggling to find his way through a cutthroat music school. He encounters Terence Fletcher (J.K. Simmons), a ruthless instructor who counterintuitively inflicts physical and emotional abuse to help Neiman realize his potential. 

The actors do a phenomenal job of playing their respective characters. Teller is able to perfectly convey the naive yet ambitious drummer. Simmons’ role as a borderline sadist is stellar, a performance for which he won an Academy Award. He is able to terrify both Neiman and the viewer, embellishing on his already ruthless demeanour with impromptu colorfully vulgar language. 

In a movie centered on music, the soundtrack certainly did not disappoint. The main piece in “Whiplash” is a catchy, fast paced jazz tune by the same name, composed by Justin Hurwitz. The song is used to represent Andrew’s obsessive strive towards perfection. Throughout the movie, other mainly jazz focused songs are used to back the thrilling and agitated tone of the movie. 

The only slightly uneasy factor of the film is that Fletcher seems to think Andrews’s potential success is a direct result of Fletcher’s abusive attitude and constant psychological warfare with the drummer. The movie seems to imply that success is only obtained by endurance through tyrannical abuse and glorifies the value of extreme pressure. 

“Whiplash” is electrifying, perfect for a bolt of energy or motivation. The overall theme of unflinching hard work is presented well, though perhaps over exaggerated, but inspires the viewer nonetheless.