Denver Film Festival Review: ‘The Whale’
“I need to know I’ve done one thing right with my life.”
In a press announcement after the 45th Denver Film Festival concluded, Artistic Director Matthew Campbell announced that “This year’s DFF45 programming lineup was a pure reflection of our lives today and the countless challenges, as well as celebrations. Our team is incredibly proud of the diverse lineup that we were able to bring to our audiences and to now recognize the films and professionals who created and brought these stories and experiences to life.” Out of many of the honorees this year, the Denver Film Festival chose to award The Whale with the Rare Pearl Award, a distinction that the jury has bestowed upon previous films like Nomadland, which went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Based on the 2021 play of the same name by Samuel D. Hunter, The Whale stars Brendan Fraser as Charlie, an obese English professor who attempts a relationship with his estranged teenage daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink). Reclusive and stubborn as all get out, Charlie lives out his days engrossed in literature and food, two passions that have become all-encompassing fixtures of his daily existence. When not instructing his students via a video-off Zoom class, he is aided by his best friend and nurse, Liz (Hong Chau), in getting off of the couch, into his bed, and lifting his 600-pound body whenever he falls.
Deeply wrapped in guilt yet comical in rare moments, Charlie mourns the loss of his lifelong love, a man he left his wife (Samantha Morton) and daughter for years prior. Spouting excerpts from Moby Dick with almost every breath he takes, Charlie believes he doesn’t have enough time left on this Earth before making amends with his family. But his family doesn’t want his apologies, as Ellie’s own behavior is understandably mean, stubborn like her father, and a tad homophobic.
Charlie does, however, make a quasi-connection with a religious missionary named Thomas (Ty Simpkins) in what appears to be a quaint Idaho town where they all reside. Curiously, Liz and Charlie’s late boyfriend have strange connections to the local church which Thomas represents, making his arrival into The Whale an unwelcome one on many levels. When Ellie resists getting closer to Charlie in his hour of need, her relationship with Thomas becomes a focus.
Directed by Darren Aronofsky, who gave the world The Wrestler and Requiem for a Dream, the events of The Whale take place all within Charlie’s house over the course of one week. Bound to his couch and wheelchair throughout most of the film, Aronofsky closes his audience into Charlie’s home and life as if the walls are closing in on everyone in every scene. It’s a character study of humanity, how we treat one another, and the choices we make when we follow our hearts and not our heads.
Much will be spoken about Brendan Fraser’s performance as the 600-pound queer Charlie in what many predict will be an awards season triumph for the veteran actor. Much of this is deserved as he gives the performance of a lifetime as a man living with regret, harming himself by eating himself to death as he is running out of time to reconnect with the people he left behind. But an excellent performance does not a remarkable film make.
The Whale strolls along like the play that it’s based on, constricted inside Charlie’s living room for 90% of the movie. As one person enters a scene, another exits, and the melodramatic dialogue unfolds inside this theme. Aronofsky does his best to make The Whale interesting with light and sound effects flanked by a haunting score from Rob Simonsen, but it fails to deliver in many respects.
The highlight of The Whale comes from an outstanding turn from Hong Chau, who gives a memorable performance in a vital role that balances Charlie’s outlandish behavior. Chau brings light and love along with an indestructible fortitude to carry on her duties as a friend to Charlie, despite his unwillingness to change course. If Charlie is the whale, she is Captain Ahab, bracing against wind and rain to tame the being she loves and once respected.
While many performances shine through, and the third act delivers a semi-triumphant crescendo to what should have been a magnificent opus, The Whale doesn’t hit all the marks it desperately attempts.
The Whale premiered at the 45th Denver Film Festival as part of its CinemaQ program. It will be released in theaters on December 9.
Photos courtesy of A24
