Movie Monday December 12: The Whale

I picked a new release, The Whale, for my movie this week for multiple reasons. I’m a huge fan of Brendan Fraser, I’ve seen a lot of promo for the film on social media, I’ve heard of the play, I could go on. The Whale didn’t disappoint. It was a tearjerker and full of emotional performances. Since it’s a new release, I won’t do as extensive of a summary, but still:

**Warning, mild spoilers ahead, so if you haven’t watched the movie yet, what are you doing?**

Charlie (Brendan Fraser) is reaching the end of his life. The week leading up to his death is full of moments of revelation, potential connection and reconnection, and ultimately acceptance. However, it is also full of immense heartbreak. Charlie, morbidly obese and reclusive, has struggled with emotional overeating and a mix of guilt and grief since the death of his partner, Alan. His only connection to the outside world is through his friend Liz (Hong Chau) and the English course he teaches online, though with the camera off. During the week he is visited multiple times by Liz, his estranged daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink), and religious missionary Thomas (Ty Simpkins). Liz wants Charlie to fight and go to the hospital, he is in congenital heart failure, but Charlie insists he can’t afford it. Ellie only comes back to see Charlie because he’s promised to rewrite her failed essays and give her all his money when he dies. She still holds a lot of resentment towards her father for leaving her and her mother (Samantha Morton) for Alan a decade prior. Charlie deals with more and more emotional and physical stress as the week goes on, but ultimately he accepts his end.

The Whale was a tough movie to watch at times. There were many scenes between Brendan Fraser and the supporting cast that were touching, immensely sad, and even humorous at times. It felt like we, the audience, were intruding on what should be a very intimate and private time for Charlie and those around him. The movie tried to show Charlie compassion and kindness at times, but it still made an obese man the center of ridicule and hatred. 

Some of those negative emotions made sense, like Ellie’s anger at Charlie abandoning her and her mother, but Thomas’s hatred was based on religious bigotry. There was also a small moment when pizza delivery driver Dan (Sathya Sridharan) sees Charlie for the first time. We’d heard his voice throughout the film, but never seen him since Charlie waits till he’s gone to get his pizza. Dan stays behind one night, perhaps out of curiosity towards this reclusive man. When he finally sees Charlie, the look on his face is one of disgust and pity, which triggers an intense emotional eating binge for Charlie. 

The movie also seems to take a weirdly religious or morally superior attitude towards fat people. It seems to say that people like this are meant to suffer or be the outlet for others’ rage. Then at other times it seems to be the opposite, especially in the scene between Mary (Samantha Morton) and Charlie. She should be one of the people most angry at him, but instead she shows true compassion, perhaps even more than Liz has at times. 

It’s been several days since I’ve seen The Whale and I’m still not sure exactly what I think about the movie. It seems to be full of contradictions in its attitude towards fat people, difficult family dynamics, and religion. The movie also turns a character’s pain into a spectacle. Darren Aronofsky, the director, is known for surrealist films that push boundaries and have unsetting elements. While this isn’t truly psychological or surrealistic (besides the ending), The Whale does push the audience to sit through some mildly disturbing scenes and make us question why we react a certain way. It’s definitely a film that’s meant to make you ask questions and reevaluate personal biases and social attitudes. But how many people will actually do that?

One moment that made me cry:

To be honest, I had tears in my eyes through almost the entire latter half of the film. Charlie’s final moment with his daughter and her reading the essay is what made the tears fall though. It’s a sad and beautiful finish to a polarizing movie.

There’s so much more I could say about The Whale, but I’ll just leave it at 7 out of 10.