The performances here in The Whale are so fantastic that they deserve better material.
Having amazing actors like Brendan Fraser, Sadie Sink, and Hong Chau in your film but having them work with unintentionally melodramatic moments in a screenplay that isn't as profound as it thinks it is, is a misfortune.
The Whale follows Charlie (Fraser), an obese online teacher living alone, with his nurse Liz (Chau) and a visit from his estranged daughter (Sink).
I actually quite admired the film and thought the plot wasn't half bad, until the third act. Before that, it was quite a riveting story about our characters reconciling with each other and facing their own demons. But soon after, comes a disturbing scene where Charlie binge eats all of his stack of junk food. What I figured is that the film can't quite escape its thin knowledge of obesity. It can't quite achieve its intended effect without one or two of these uncomfortable sceneries.
What I also figured, pretty early on, is that the film is based on a play. The characteristics are thoroughly clear, from the single location setting to the direction of Darren Aronofsky, to how each line of dialogue follows one another so precisely. The conversations here never strive to be authentic, but rather transparently dramatic.
The title of this film is "The Whale," which is quite obviously a metaphor. Poems and essays are repetitively recited all through, discussing and dissecting this subject of a "whale." And thus it makes this one of the least subtle metaphors I've seen on film.
Once again, nothing is to be faulted except for the writing, which puts our characters, who all are broken people, in paper-thin scenarios and attempts to fix them with heavy-handed literature. Our actors carry this one all the way.
Having amazing actors like Brendan Fraser, Sadie Sink, and Hong Chau in your film but having them work with unintentionally melodramatic moments in a screenplay that isn't as profound as it thinks it is, is a misfortune.
The Whale follows Charlie (Fraser), an obese online teacher living alone, with his nurse Liz (Chau) and a visit from his estranged daughter (Sink).
I actually quite admired the film and thought the plot wasn't half bad, until the third act. Before that, it was quite a riveting story about our characters reconciling with each other and facing their own demons. But soon after, comes a disturbing scene where Charlie binge eats all of his stack of junk food. What I figured is that the film can't quite escape its thin knowledge of obesity. It can't quite achieve its intended effect without one or two of these uncomfortable sceneries.
What I also figured, pretty early on, is that the film is based on a play. The characteristics are thoroughly clear, from the single location setting to the direction of Darren Aronofsky, to how each line of dialogue follows one another so precisely. The conversations here never strive to be authentic, but rather transparently dramatic.
The title of this film is "The Whale," which is quite obviously a metaphor. Poems and essays are repetitively recited all through, discussing and dissecting this subject of a "whale." And thus it makes this one of the least subtle metaphors I've seen on film.
Once again, nothing is to be faulted except for the writing, which puts our characters, who all are broken people, in paper-thin scenarios and attempts to fix them with heavy-handed literature. Our actors carry this one all the way.