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Replace the morbid obesity with cancer, and this is nothing unique.
I strongly disagree. Charlie's condition is self-inflicted - he has completely let himself go due to his grief and his guilt. He is fully aware that he is eating himself to death, which adds hugely to his sense of self-loathing. None of this would be the case in someone dying of cancer.
To my mind, addiction is one of the movie's major themes. Charlie numbs his pain with food the same way others might use alcohol or drugs. He knows it's killing him, but he just can't help it.
Review by BronsonBlockedParent2023-12-22T08:36:21Z— updated 2023-12-26T20:41:14Z
In keeping with the reoccurring message of The Whale, I will write an honest review. I did not like this movie. It was good, but only that. In fact, I firmly suspect that the only reason it will receive most of the attention is simply because of the subject matter - not the least of which provoking the ire of "body-positivity" types.
See, this is merely a family drama. Replace the morbid obesity with cancer, and this is the nothing unique.
As an aside, I'll say that I typically like A24 movies, and I enjoy almost all of Aronofsky's films.
To repeat, this is nothing special. On a technical level, it's great, but the story is flat: A man, Charlie, is dying, and wants to reconnect with his estranged daughter, and ex wife. The end. The secondary characters never mattered to me. The details of Charlie's life never mattered to me. When I first heard about The Whale, I thought it was going to be an emotional rollercoaster, however it just...wasn't.
When the credits rolled, I gathered that this was based on a play. In other words, I haven't seen the play - maybe it's great. Doesn't change how I feel about the movie.
The only highlight I have to speak of is Brendan Fraser - as our lead, Charlie. I have never liked Fraser, as an actor, and feel that he is one of the most overrated mainstream actors. That being said, he was great here. I can't give the movie a high rating, but any points will be due to his performance.
I don't know who I could recommend this to. It's a family drama that lacks the needed emotional power to make it work. It's a story about grief and regret, but fails to build the necessary pieces within to have any impact.