Rewatchables Reference

• The ending / last 25 minutes – from the jazz bar scene through the final Caravan performance.
• The 'rushing or dragging' scene – the most iconic moment, used in the trailer, parodied on SNL.
• The jazz bar scene where Fletcher gives the Charlie Parker speech.

• Every father-son scene with Miles Teller and Paul Reiser.
• Miles Teller as a drummer and J.K. Simmons as a conductor – both completely believable.
• The name 'Fletcher' – a fletcher is a person who puts feathers on arrows, i.e., preparing the next Bird.
• J.K. Simmons got two cracked ribs after Teller tackled him and kept filming for two more days.

Hard to pick – many songs that sound like classic jazz standards were actually written by Justin Hurwitz specifically for the film. Hurwitz and Nicholas Britell (Succession composer) wrote a song together on the soundtrack that sounds like it was recorded in 1937.

• The opening scene.
• Bloody hand in the ice water / pitcher.
• The ending sequence – camera going back and forth between the drumming and J.K. Simmons getting more and more excited.

The girlfriend subplot – missing one scene to make us feel the connection/loss. She appears 4 times plus the phone call breakup.

• The mean-spirited insults would be too unrealistic now – someone would have recorded Fletcher and reported him.
• 'Double fucking rainbow' reference – nobody under 22 would know what that was.

• Sean: 'Whiplash' is still by far Chazelle's best movie, better than La La Land.
• Bill: Emma Stone was market-corrected by Melissa Benoist – if Benoist never happens, maybe Stone is in La La Land.

• Dane DeHaan was reportedly offered the Miles Teller role and didn't take it.
• Johnny Simmons played the role in the short film; Teller got it because he was a bigger name.

The Happy Meal kid scene – Fletcher destroying the kid.

Chris Mulkey as the uncle – IMDB goes back to 48 Hours and 'First Blood', was Hank on Twin Peaks, ~300 credits.

• Simmons and Teller are untouchable – perfect casting.
• Robin Williams floated for the Paul Reiser role.

• Budget $3.3 million, grossed $49 million.
• Based on Chazelle's experience at Princeton High School – had a band instructor who died in 2003.
• Teller had been drumming since age 15; took additional lessons 4 hrs/day, 3 days/week.
• The Charlie Parker cymbal story is slightly inaccurate – the cymbal was thrown to the floor, not at Parker's head.
• Filmed in 20 days.
• J.K. Simmons really slapped Miles Teller in the takes they used.
• Won 3 Oscars: Best Supporting Actor, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Mixing.

• J.K. Simmons – yes, absolutely.
• Miles Teller – not yet at the time (now maybe Maverick).
• Damien Chazelle – La La Land technically, but 'Whiplash' is the birth of it.
• Caravan (the song) – no question.

• Why doesn't the rest of the band ever speak up about Fletcher's obsession with the drummer?
• Andrew rents a car instead of getting a taxi when the bus breaks down – renting a car takes 20 minutes and he's 19.
• Leaving the scene of a car accident – wouldn't he go to jail?
• Would Fletcher really sabotage a live JVC performance just to get revenge on Andrew? He loves jazz too much for that.

Untouchable. Don't touch this movie. A prequel about young Fletcher could work.

Wayne Jenkins as the uncle.

J.K. Simmons – he got it, and he deserved it.

• Is Fletcher actually good at his job / actually gifted musically?
• Does this method of cruel coaching actually produce greatness?
• Who took the 'Whiplash' music folder?

• The two bloody drumsticks.
• The chair Fletcher threw at Andrew.

There's a price to being great. Do you want to pay the price or not?

• Tar – obvious pairing (but that's a long, grueling day).
• 'An Officer and a Gentleman' – different eras of the cruel mentor genre.

Damien Chazelle – 'the ultimate calling card movie.' Simmons wins the movie when you're watching it, but Chazelle won the career trajectory.

Craig Horlbeck: was 19 when it came out, a film major in college – 'a film major's wet dream.' Students recreated scenes for classes. At 19 he wanted that coach, wanted to be pushed to his breaking point. Now older, he's less sure.