In Defense of Chazelle pt.1
Around half of the people in my life are jazz musicians. The others, friends I've collected through the years in multiple contexts, know me as wearing a couple different hats. Perhaps they know me through work, or through social media, or through high school. These people that are separate from jazz provide a beautiful balance to my life, friends that enjoy my company purely because our personalities are compatible, not just because they enjoy the way I swing. Friends that will stick by me even if I play a bad solo or mess up the shots in the outhead.
However, as most of them do not know the intricacies of the jazz world, upon hearing about my profession I am doomed to hear the same question: “Have you seen Whiplash?”
There is this notion amongst jazz musicians that whiplash is not a valid jazz movie. It does not accurately portray what jazz academia is like and it gives the general public an alienating view of us. a lot of jazz musicians, then, say that Whiplash is a bad movie. The same is often said of La La Land, Damien Chazelle's second film, which also features a jazz musician as a main character. Jazz musicians do not like the jazz that is represented in Damien Chazelle's movies. I however disagree. I love it.
When I was 15 my family took a summer vacation to croatia. We stayed on a small island called Split, and we were there in mid-August during a heatwave. The main thing to do there is swim and explore, but my family could hardly stand being outside for longer than 10 minutes, the Mediterranean sun melting us and making us irritable. So I stayed in my room quite a bit, watching movies.
I was getting into music that summer, playing a lot of guitar and bass. I had discovered that there is music education outside of high school and the thought of being a professional musician was creeping slowly into my mind. So I watched Whiplash, the movie about the jazz drummer suffering tireless abuse within jazz academia. I knew then and there I would be a jazz drummer.
I learned once i began taking music seriously that most musicians really dislike Whiplash. When I was trying to fit in, I'd just laugh and say “yeah, you're right, it's so unrealistic and stupid. Obviously a teacher would never do that”. But through the years, as I've sharpened my critical eye and just simply become smarter, I've realized all the traits that musicians hate about this film are the traits that make it an excellent piece of cinema.
Firstly, everyone seems to think that Whiplash is a jazz movie. It is not. It is a war movie, with jazz as its context. So yes, there are faults in the small details : 1. The entire socialization aspect of jazz school is missing, but this is purposeful, to reinforce his isolation. 2. At the end of the film, Neiman is caught off guard when Fletcher calls a tune he doesn't have the chart for. a drummer who not only was accepted to the “best conservatory in the country” but was also selected for the best studio band within that conservatory would easily be able to catch the hits and the structure and fake it relatively well. 3. No drummer will ever have to know exactly what a tempo marking is. That is what the conductor is for. 4. The entire double time swing section. I have never heard a more confusing double time swing in my life.
But once “jazz” is reduced to a plot device, the work is to be done mainly through the interpersonal relationship between Neiman and Fletcher, because after all, that is what the movie is about. It's also important to note that Chazelle himself was a jazz drummer, and the movie is loosely based off of his relationship with his teacher, but in HIGH SCHOOL. Of course the “jazz knowledge” is shallow, he was still a kid! He probably never really went to a jam session or learned changes or tunes the way that jazz musicians do post high school.
Secondly, I believe jazz musicians dislike Whiplash because of how critical it is of jazz. Neiman is stupid. He is stuck in this abusive relationship with Fletcher and with jazz, and it has overtaken his life, his relationships, and his health. Whiplash forces the jazz musician to look at this pathetic hero, and then to ask themselves if he is the picture of success. To many jazz musicians, that is what drive and determination look like, and he is the model player. It is a cognitive dissonance for obsessive musicians to realize what they look like to the outside world and therefore it makes them uncomfortable. The movie also challenges the “Tradition” outright, claiming how “jazz is dying because they wont let teachers abuse their students anymore”, which is a debated topic in many circles. Chazelle also does a great job of subtly nodding to the misogynist landscape, including only one female player throughout the entire film (who gets immediately condescended by Fletcher), and by having most of the non-musical dialogue between players be about sexualizing women. Fletcher also condescends his band by calling them “ladies”, making it clear that this is not a universe for women to inhabit.
Lastly, of course Fletcher's character is over the top and unrealistic. It's a movie! That is quite literally the whole point of film; to entertain, to catch people's attention, to tell an interesting story. I apologize, but if someone made a movie about the average jazz musician, with their average teachers who aren't crazy, with their average relationships and decisions, no one would watch it! It's Hollywood. When Fletcher throws a chair at Neiman, you're supposed to think “wow, that's insane!” because it is! The fact that this is the most used argument against this movie constantly shocks me. Oh no, you let yourself be entertained! You had a good time with a piece of media without overthinking it to death! God help you!
I’m being overdramatic, but my love for this movie is endless. You can tell so clearly that Chazelle does love this music and he loves making it look like sport. It’s visually stunning, the script is fantastic, the performances were great (although that is not really what drumming looks like), and I think it had a net positive effect on the world. I am thrilled it exists.