By Keith Walther | Rose Law Group Reporter
After a prolonged pause in his career, Brendan Fraser returns as a leading man, delivering not only the best performance of his career, but the best performance of any actor in 2022. “The Whale” is another disturbing psychological drama from artistic filmmaker Darren Aronofsky with incredible depth.
Charlie (Brendan Fraser) is an online English instructor who struggles with the simplest tasks like walking and breathing due to his physical situation of being 600 pounds. Unable to leave his apartment, he must rely on the kindness of his only true friend, Liz (Hong Chau), a nurse trying her best to keep his vitals in check while desperately encouraging him to secure real medical help at the hospital. Mired in depression, Charlie refuses medical treatment and continues to bury his feelings in food.
As he comes to understand his inevitable fate, he seeks to reconnect with his estranged daughter, Ellie (Sadie Sink), attempting to repair a broken relationship. Meanwhile, Thomas (Ty Simpkins), a door-to-door missionary for a controversial religion, is welcomed in by Charlie. This peels back more layers of the onion, revealing Charlie’s thoughts on spirituality and insight as to what caused his downward spiral. Despite the selfishness that led him down this dark path, Charlie seeks to help his daughter strive for a better life before it’s too late.
“The Whale” sets itself apart with remarkable acting performances, none better than Brendan Fraser, which is incredibly surprising given that his career has shown him to be a below average actor as evidenced in films like “The Mummy,” “George of the Jungle,” and “Dudley Do-Right.” Then his personal life went through a hellish upheaval in the early to mid-2000s, having been the victim of an alleged sexual assault, leading to his divorce, and followed by the death of his mother. Depression coupled with mounting health issues forced him to step away from acting, so this film represents a significant comeback for which audiences are cheering.
One can’t help but wonder if the personal strife Fraser encountered gave him the experience to draw upon for this in-depth and dark role. Much in the same way audiences can feel the heart a singer puts into their songs; Fraser’s heartfelt performance can be felt from the depth of his soul. He embodies this role so perfectly, portraying the labored breathing and difficult movements that makes the audience believe he truly put on 600 pounds to play the part rather than wearing the prosthetics he actually wore to give his giant appearance. This will likely be not only Brendan’s first Oscar nomination but also his first Oscar win for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
Hong Chau, fresh off a memorable performance in “The Menu” just a month previously, provides an Oscar worthy performance herself in a supporting role as the caring friend who hates the thought of possibly losing the most important person in her life. She displays incredible range, filling her performance with genuine emotion as well as welcome comic relief. Look for Hong Chau to continue growing her career into 2023 with the new Wes Anderson movie, slated for release in June.
Best known for her role as the fiery redhead Max in Netflix’s “Stranger Things,” Sadie Sink shows some acting chops in this film as the angry, depressed daughter, who feels jaded towards a father who abandoned her at a young age. She expertly conveys a hardened exterior that melts the audiences’ hearts when her façade starts to crack.
Director Darren Aronofsky is known for making depressing movies, conveying a sense of hopelessness and the darkest attributes of human nature like “Requiem for a Dream” or “Black Swan.” “The Whale,” while still dark and depressing, is a bit different, giving more heartfelt emotion and genuine caring. This makes the message he’s trying to convey more impactful. Filming this almost exclusively in the confines of the main character’s apartment makes it that much more personal and increases the degree of difficulty in keeping the audience’s attention.
Aronofsky is an artist as he slowly reveals meaningful moments in the story, maintaining a seamless pace throughout the film. As in his previous films, he does not hesitate to show severely uncomfortable moments that seek to shock and disgust the audience, which at times becomes a little too much to handle. All in all, this film could still earn him an Oscar nomination for Best Director and even a Best Picture nomination. It will certainly receive an Oscar nomination for Best Makeup, making Brendan Fraser realistically look like a 600-pound man.
“The Whale” is worth watching for Brendan Fraser’s dynamic performance alone. At times the movie will be disgusting, it will be funny, it will be profoundly sad, but most of all it will be thought provoking. If you do watch the movie, be prepared to lose your appetite for pizza and fried chicken for a while.
This movie earns:
