The Whale Movie Review: Darren Aronofsky is someone who really likes exploring the more cynical side of life. With movies like Black Swan, Mother! and Requiem for a Dream, the director has constantly explored the worst tendencies of human beings with themes like passion and addiction fueling those stories. With The Whale though, the director tried to switch stances and make for a more hopeful watch, however, the message never exactly came across due to just how confused the script here seemed with itself. Puss in Boots - The Last Wish Movie Review: Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek’s Shrek Spinoff is a Vibrant Extravaganza With Some Stellar Animation and Storytelling (LatestLY Exclusive).

The Whale follows Charlie (Brendan Fraser), an obese online tutor who passes his days by teaching literature to his students. Faced with heart failure which only gives him a week to live, he decides to connect back with his estranged daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink) in hopes of knowing that he has at least done one thing right in his life. Portraying a heartbreaking tale, Aronofsky’s latest is nothing short of a miserable adventure that’s fueled with brutally honest performances.

A Still From The Whale (Photo Credits: A24)

We all have heard of the “comeback” performance that Fraser gives here, and the hype is pretty much true. A middle-aged divorcee who abandoned his family for a gay lover, Charlie’s life is pretty much upended in the worst possible way when he is struck with a tragedy. Delivering a devastating performance that almost feels masochistic in its delivery, Fraser makes the most of it while Aronofsky’s more cynical themes are shoved into the fat-suit worn by him that almost feels phobic in a way.

The one thing that’s really noticeable about The Whale is that just how condescending to itself it feels in so many instances. On a story that’s focused so much about trying to find positivity within humans, it can’t help itself but veer into exploring the worst that comes along with it. It’s a film that’s very much focused on going against itself, and in turn it makes those performances ultimately fall flat.

Watch the Trailer for The Whale:

Hong Chau especially is in great form here portraying the role of Liz, a nurse who is a close friend of Charlie and looks after him. Constantly shouting at him for all the bad decisions he makes, one would think she just wants the best for him, but even then, she goes against the grail and enables his worst tendencies by bringing him food filled with enough grease to last you for a week. The Whale just doesn’t know what to do with its message

So is in the case of Sadie Sink who plays Ellie, the worst imaginable daughter you think you could have, and yet Charlie tries to find hope and optimism within her even though the writing does its best to make sure that she doesn’t have good intentions at all. Secretly feeding Charlie Ambien and taking photos of him and posting them online with some really devious captions, there was perhaps a better way to showcase a more positive side to her. And then you have the evangelistic missionary by the name of Thomas (Ty Simpkins), who has a whole side-plot to himself that never really materialises anything more than a bleak look into one’s faith in God.

A Still From The Whale (Photo Credits: A24)

Charlie’s own story also feels like a punching bag ready to explode. Having his camera off so that his students can’t get a peek at him or leaving a $20 note in the mailbox for the pizza delivery guy, he serves as a metaphor for Jesus who takes all of the world’s beating and still has some hope for them. It also portrays obese people in a problematic way, and for those who are sensitive to topics like this, it surely will be a hard time to sit through. Shotgun Wedding Movie Review: Jennifer Lopez, Josh Duhamel’s Destination Wedding Gone Wrong is Wrapped Up in a Dull Action Affair (LatestLY Exclusive).

The Whale also almost always beats you on the head with its themes and never maintains a nature of subtlety to it. Filled with references to Moby Dick (saw this coming from a mile away), it just doesn’t feel as impactful as you would want it to be because the film has a really bad tendency of stretching out the point it’s trying to make. It all amounts to an ending that tries to go for a surrealistic feel and unfortunately ends up falling flat due to the extremely draining 118 minutes we had just sat through.

Yay!

The Performances

Nay!

Script Confused with Itself

Ending Falls Flat

Final Thoughts

The Whale never truly knows what to do with its concepts. While the performances are worth watching (and honestly hold this film together), the script is filled with condescending themes that unfortunately betray the overall point of the movie. Not sure if its Aronofsky’s penchant for being a cynic, there could have been a better way to deliver the message that The Whale was going for. The film releases in theatres on February 3, 2023.

Rating:2.0

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 02, 2023 08:14 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).