This film is being screened as part of the 2022 BFI London Film Festival. You can find all of our coverage of the festival here.
After years out of the public spotlight, Darren Aronofsky’s (Black Swan) latest outing sees the remarkably successful comeback of Brendan Fraser in this hypnotic psychological drama.
★★★★★
Throughout the past two decades of his career, Darren Aronofsky has led his direction on several viscerally challenging yet visually striking films. With stories such as Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan, and Mother! under his repertoire, his style has often divided critics and audiences alike with their often-disconcerting subject matters. Nevertheless, one principal factor that always permeates these tales is crucial: intense psychological characterisations. Each tale delves into the mental consciousness of its leading character with frequently harsh and unnerving depictions.
Based on Samuel D. Hunter’s 2012 play, The Whale is a further deep psychological character study with this film’s central protagonist: Charlie (Brendan Fraser). He is reclusive 600-pound middle-aged English teacher who is desperately attempting to rekindle his lost relationship with his teenage daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink), after abandoning his family years prior.
In conjunction with this narrative, Aronofsky’s style indicates an undeniable ideal match for conveying Charlie’s redemption-based tale. Conversely, a variety of Aronofsky motifs including hallucinatory-like visuals and disturbing sequences are dialed back in this film. But nevertheless, it slithers in a far more subtle approach with its dialogue and enthusiastic clear-cut focus on Charlie, the protagonist. The result is an incredibly powerful and harrowingly captivating tale of redemption, guilt, and distinctively: human empathy.
The focal talking point that The Whale will undoubtedly raise is Brendan Fraser’s performance. Considering Fraser’s absence in the Hollywood spotlight ever since his days headlining The Mummy franchise and various leading roles, The Whale could either revitalise or diminish his comeback. Mercifully, this film is more than merely Fraser’s big return but significantly, a new exhilarating side of his acting talent that audiences are not accustomed to. The leading role of Charlie as a 600-pound man demands substantial meticulousness and sincerity without falling into becoming a problematic fatphobic narrative. However, Brendan Fraser not only immerses himself as Charlie, but he also magnificently reveals multiple nuances that fully embody his persona and ensuing redemption arc.
The role is not simply submerging into countless prosthetics and make-up to represent his appearance, it is most profoundly capturing the core essence of this character. Brendan Fraser exquisitely communicates every exact notion Charlie undergoes and comprehends. Relentless pain and remorse from his tragic past displays through Fraser’s sublime performance whilst evaluating an empathetic sentiment towards his story. Despite his flaws and past actions, the film immediately transfixes you into his personal routine, attitudes, and life. This becomes especially effective when anything distressing occurs as sympathy towards Charlie instantly develops and the hope for his redemption increases. Fraser perfectly amalgamates Charlie’s guilt and also his desperate connection for his estranged daughter, to present an extraordinary tour de force performance.
Despite the fact Brendan Fraser excels enormously in his role, the supporting players contribute efficiently additionally. Hong Chau as his best friend and nurse, Liz is superb in her role as she underpins her character’s concern and an unbreakable bond with Charlie. Chau presents Liz as an equally vulnerable figure that equalizes her determination yet tender approaches when connecting with Charlie. In contrast, Charlie’s estranged daughter Ellie, a staunchly resents her father and is a severely troubled teenager. Ellie despises her father and his current situation resulting in high tensions between both individuals. Sadie Sink astoundingly portrays Ellie with utter conviction by considering Ellie’s own emotional troubled angst alongside her feelings of abandonment from her father.
Every performance in The Whale concurrently creates the overall emotional essence throughout the film. Whilst Aronofsky’s often viscerally striking style leads his narratives, his style is more restrained and elusive for this story. Aronofsky chooses to restrict his more disturbing aspects as seen in mother! or Black Swan. Nevertheless, his multifaceted representations of troubled individuals still shine in The Whale. Charlie’s journey is equally as harrowing as other Aronofsky characters, for example, Nina in Black Swan. Since the majority of The Whale is set in Charlie’s house, Aronofsky’s intense characterization is hidden during the course of the film, but it eventually strikes hard in the most crucial dramatic moments. When these sequences happen, the emotional sentiments are completely illustrated and continually leave a vast impact after each scene.
One of the primary themes evoked in The Whale is that of the nature of empathy, particularly with stigmatized individuals that society habitually demonizes. With a plot concerning a 600-pound protagonist, one may think this film would fall into the problematic territory of fatphobia. However, The Whale never trivializes the protagonist but creates an empathetic narrative of acceptance, societal misconception, and rekindling of lost connection. A key emphasis on the empathy of stigmatized individuals is what defines The Whale as an extraordinary and phenomenal piece of filmmaking. It conveys a rarely expressed perspective and communicates a redemption that will leave viewers sobbing by the end credits.
Verdict
The Whale is an exceptional comeback film for Brendan Fraser and another phenomenal success in Darren Aronofsky’s filmography. Its thoughtful yet compassionate redemption tale will certainly mark a huge impact on audiences and is unquestionably an astonishing highlight for this year’s BFI London Film Festival.
Words by Ethan Soffe
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