65. The Whale; movie review

 

THE WHALE

Cert 15

117 mins

BBFC advice: Contains strong language, sex, drug misuse

There is one certainty about The Whale - love it or loathe it, nobody will be able to forget it.

Darren Aronofsky's film is extraordinary and Brendan Fraser gives the performance of a lifetime.

And yet it is almost entirely set in the claustrophobic apartment in which Fraser's character, Charlie, lives.

He is a morbidly obese teacher who holds lessons through cyberspace and doesn't reveal himself to his students, claiming the camera on his laptop is not working.

In reality, he is ashamed of his appearance.

It is obvious that The Whale is adapted from a theatre piece so some of the melodrama feels as if it is being played out on stage.

The focus is the last week of Charlie's life - he refuses treatment as his body fails under its huge weight and Charlie's binge eating.

Meanwhile, his best friend (Hong Chau), who is also a medic, tries to administer assistance the best way she can.

And then his long-estranged and very bullish daughter (Sadie Sink) appears and is truly horrible to her father and everyone else.

Meanwhile, a religious evangelist (Ty Simpkins) tries to inveigle himself to provide spiritual guidance before Charlie passes away.

There are no laughs during The Whale - the overriding emotion is one of pity for Charlie and his best friend and frustration at those who suddenly appear in his life.

This is a long way from the family films which made Fraser famous but he proves he was a superb choice for the lead role. The rest of the cast, which includes Samantha Morton, deserve plaudits too

Most distracting is Fraser's appearance - the CGI and prosthetics teams on The Whale have done a spectacular job in making him look circa 40 stone.

All in all, I have never seen a movie like it.

Reasons to watch: Brendan Fraser

Reasons to avoid: Upsetting scenes

Laughs: None

Jumps: None

Vomit: Yes

Nudity: Yes

Overall rating: 9/10

Did you know? Darren Aronofsky had been trying to get the film made for a decade but could not cast Charlie until he saw Brendan Fraser in a trailer for Journey to the End of the Night on YouTube.

The final word. Darren Aronofsky: "He hadn’t been given many opportunities of late and he wanted to work. Emotionally, you have to do so much from joy to sadness to despair to selfishness without an ounce of cynicism. I knew I needed an actor who really wanted to get back to work.” Indiewire

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