Students in his Zoom class have no idea what Charlie looks like. But they can tell he’s a stickler, particularly when it comes to criticizing their writing.
When the camera is off, we see the disconnect. Charlie is a morbidly obese man who doesn’t look like he has left his chair in weeks. Discipline seems out of reach; death is imminent. Before that happens, others drift in to try to save him.
In “The Whale,” director Darren Aronofsky isn’t afraid to address the elephant in the room but can’t quite pull off an intervention.
One after another, those who come into the dark, depressing home try to get through to Charlie (Brendan Fraser). Nothing seems to work.
Still, there’s a daughter, Ellie (Sadie Sink), who has the best argument. She hasn’t had a relationship with her father since he left her mother for a student.
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Charlie makes his case to a missionary from Iowa (Ty Simpkins), his caretaker (Hong Chau), his ex-wife (Samantha Morton) and, for good measure, a pizza delivery guy.
No one is buying, however.
Just when you think you can be sympathetic, Aronofsky muddies the water and makes it impossible to cheer for Charlie. He made his bed. Now, he’s lying in it.
Those around him practically scream their intentions. And that’s how Fraser’s performance stands out.
Underplaying most everything, he emerges with a performance that’s so nuanced, so real, he has to be a frontrunner for this year’s Best Actor Oscar. When he offers that beaten, tear-filled look, we can almost hear his cry for help. And yet, he won’t even get out of that chair. He chokes several times, struggles to catch his breath repeatedly.
There’s a recognizable man in Fraser’s hands. Unfortunately, everyone else is so screechy (and preachy), they don’t register. You can see why he doesn’t listen.
Based on a play by Samuel D. Hunter, “The Whale” has a message to impart. Aronofsky just isn’t sure what it is.
Are we supposed to feel sorry for Charlie? Mock him? Wait for the clock to run out? Or are we to understand those pressures that contributed to his condition?
While we hope Aronofsky wasn’t doing this just to make a statement about obesity, he doesn’t do much to change the impression.
“What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” covered similar territory but used its supporting characters as leverage. Here, they’re judge and jury, blaming Charlie for their lot in life.
A nice moment with Ellie hints at what could have been but “The Whale” isn’t biting. Instead, those Zoom classes are merely a taste of a better film. The two Charlies melt into one. Neither wants rescuing. Instead, we see those choking sessions, the porn addiction and the outline of a man who might have been.
The film succeeds only because Fraser is so good at finding this character. His makeup is good, too. But beyond those elements, Aronofsky comes up empty-handed.
“The Whale” is a good character study. It just needs a story to make that character come to life.
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