 Director: Darren Aronofsky Starring: Brendan Fraser Studio: A24 Genre(s): Drama Rated: R (For for language, some drug use and sexual content) |
There is an online course where a teacher talks to his
students about writing. He is giving advice on how to expand their view on the
world, to reach inside and think about what they read, and to think about life
differently. He speaks this while his computer camera remains off. The camera
is off for a reason (and it is an ironic one). For while the teacher – Charlie
(Brendan Fraser) – encourages his students to expand their horizons, he is a
morbidly obese recluse who is confined to his apartment. He spends his days
eating food, grading papers, and masturbating to gay porn.
The only company he gets is his friend Liz (Hong Chau), a
nurse who tries to keep him alive while she simultaneously enables his
destructive lifestyle by bringing him unhealthy food (and maybe the pizza
delivery boy, who speaks to him through the door but has no idea what his best
customer looks like). It is a sad and tragic life, and audience members going
to see “The Whale” are likely to feel repulsed by the man they see in front of
them. Right off the bat director Darren Aronofsky makes it a point to have the
audience confront who Charlie is: a tragic figure who has the same feelings,
sexual desires, and heartache any normal person has.
His weight is result of tragedy in his life that he was
unable to cope with, and that weight is finally catching up with him; when he
discovers that he is suffering from congestive heart failure he makes one last
attempt to reconnect with his estranged daughter. He refuses to go to the
hospital, claiming that he doesn’t have the money to seek medical treatment. In
reality we sense that he simply feels his life is no longer worth living. He
does get one additional visitor in the form of a teenage evangelist, who may
not be able to help Charlie in the real world but whom believes his soul can be
saved in the afterlife. Charlie rolls his eyes at the young man and puts up
with his Bible talk, but secretly seems to enjoy having a new friend to speak
to.
“The Whale” doesn’t shy away from the depressing subject
material that is fostered on the audience. I expect this to be a very polarizing
film with how it portrays obesity. Although Brendan Fraser’s marvelous
performance rightfully has been receiving standing ovations at film festivals
there has been much discussion on whether or not the film takes part in “fat
shaming.” That’s a difficult question to answer because the movie clearly pities
Charlies state of affairs. Scenes of him eating himself to death are difficult
to watch (and certainly made my wife turn away in shame at times). The movie is
not trying to hide its distain for Charlies body. On the other hand, I think
most would agree that Charlie is far from a healthy man.
While many of us may not know people like Charlie, that is
because they tend to live at home without getting out of the house much. If
someone does weigh 600 lbs. (the movie never specifies exactly how much he
weighs, so we’re forced to guess) it is unlikely they are living a fulfilling
life. As someone who was heading down this path and topped out at a little over
350lbs at one, I see no issue with media that wants to discourage viewers from
heading down such a terrible path. Ultimately, I don’t feel the film is
fatphobic because Charlie is a man with a heart of gold. When he does reconnect
with his daughter she treats him like the scum of the Earth, and her anger at
him for leaving his family many years ago can be felt by everyone watching.
Though we hate this girl with every inch of our fiber,
Charlie believes that she is a good person deep down inside. At least, I find
he is more compassionate than I could ever be. Where “The Whale” truly shines
is the ability to makes Charlie’s world small and confined while also making
Charlie himself loveable and hopeful. The movie is even shot in the 1.33:1
aspect ratio, meaning black bars are shown on the side of the screen. These
bars enclose Charlie’s world even more, making him take up the vast majority of
the screen. By forcing audiences to focus on him we see the human beneath the
body fat, and thus relate to someone we would normally scorn in real life.
Despite all the praises I could sing about Aronofsky’s
direction and Fraser’s performance, there is a good chance many of you will not
want to watch the film. Just the idea of spending time with someone like
Charlie may be too much for some people, and it is a shame because “The Whale”
does what great movies do: they give us a chance to spend time with someone we
normally wouldn’t spend time with and see the world through his eyes.
Personally, I find that accusations of ‘fat shaming’ to be mere distractions to
the bigger picture, in that more movies like “The Whale” are needed in the
world. It gives us an empathetic view of a tragic figure that society mocks and
frowns upon, but who has many of the same needs and desires we do. It may not
be a revolutionary message, but the execution sure is.
NOTE: Forgive the lack of photos in this review. The studio only made the poster and the above image available to critics, so readers will have to see the film to see anything else in the movie.
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