The Whale (2022) Movie Review
what is going on to all my movie fans out there and welcome back to my channel my name is Elliot and this is movie files today we are back discussing the new Darren Aronofsky Drama by the name of the well now the well premiered at the Venice Film Festival earlier this year and it had mostly positive reviews and things coming out of the festival such as maybe a best picture nomination best lead performance by male actor but there’s also been a little bit of criticism in regards to the representation of our main character Charlie got
a chance to see the film last night I’m gonna be sharing my thoughts with you all and let you know while in this review if it’s worth checking out we’ll be discussing that and so much more in today’s for the free review but before we get into it if you all haven’t already consider subscribing to the channel and hit that notification Bell that way you can stay up to date with all my daily movie reviews you can also give your boy a follow on Instagram Tick Tock and Twitter all those links can be found in
the description of this very video which Speaking of this video If you all enjoyed my movie review make sure you’re hitting that Thumbs Up Button make sure you’re sharing this review but more importantly
start off with my positives and I want to talk about the production and the behind the camera angle and the aspects of this film starting off with the director and writer we have Darren Aronofsky and this film was written by Samuel D Hunter who Samuel D Hunter actually wrote the screenplay based on his own play this film is based on the play with the same name of the well and let’s talk about Derek now I am I’m 50 50 on Darren Aronofsky as a director I’ve seen out of his eight films now I’ve seen five
of them and he definitely has a pattern in a particular genre and focus on characters that he seems to really Thrive upon and I appreciate that about Darren especially when it comes to this film this is a film about broken people and it’s about broken hearts and how these characters have been heartbroken by who you would consider to be your closest people that you would know in your life which is your loved one so I think the way Darren and also the way that the screenplay is written really does show and reflect self-destruction how people
can sometimes feel helpless and I think that also Darren does a good job of portraying different characters and also characters in this film how they deal with Obsession you know I think of films like Requiem of a Dream I think of Black Swan I think of the wrestler and how he deals with characters that either dive into having a food addiction having alcohol drugs being addicted to Greatness so I think when Darren’s at his best is when he focuses and puts a lens and shines a light on these character studies and I thought he did
a good job of kind of focusing on those elements in this film but also appreciating the Nuance of the things such as the score now we have Rob Simpson who I thought did an excellent job really enhancing the emotions throughout the film especially when it came to Charlie and when Charlie did certain things in the film The Score really kind of puts you in the mood and also highlighting the the production in regards to the set they’re on now this film is mostly and when I say mostly I mean like 98 of this film is
set in one location which is Charlie’s apartment and for some people that may sound dull or boring but for me the one location metaphorically symbolized in my opinion Charlie’s state of isolation and this feeling of disattachment from life and also it really kind of creates this this feeling of being locked in and also feeling uncomfortable and uneasy which I think was very purposeful in the narrative in the story so again for those that don’t like One locations this might not be the film for you but I really did appreciate how we did get to focus
on what this apartment symbolized for our main character but Switching gears and kind of diving a little bit into the Nuance of the themes and the narrative that we have in the film and how it played out like for example this idea that nobody can actually save you from you your own self who can sometimes be our own worst enemies right I think we can all relate to that that there’s times that we self-sabotage ourselves whether it is diving into addictive behavior or making bad decisions putting yourself first which can affect not just yourself but
your family so I like how the film focuses on that narrative as well as how it highlights the message of not giving up on others even though they might have given up on themselves or wanted to make a even though they might have given up on themselves they still want to make a difference in someone’s life which is an important theme that I want to highlight now and this is just something from a life perspective you have to work on yourself first before you can work on others right and I really appreciate how the film
tackles that narrative and there’s many different characters like Charlie like Ellie like uh you know Liz Liz and his character so many characters that they have their own issues but they’ll rather focus on someone else’s issues and not in like a a mean-hearted way but it’s like you got to help yourself before you can help someone else entirely right so I kind of like how the film tackles that as well as giving those who made a change in their past or those that have made a bad decision in their past but they have made the
efforts to make a change in their life and giving them a second chance or something I really appreciated and also how the film handles and balances the empathy and compassion for someone versus feeling bad or enabling them and how being honest matters and saying I’m sorry and sometimes how our character Charlie says I’m sorry and how it has just more than just saying he’s sorry for something that he did for Liz who will talk about these characters here in a second but it’s more than just I’m saying sorry in that moment it has more layers
to it so there’s just so many different layers and again the nuances and these themes that I really come to appreciate after seeing this film but let’s pivot over and talk about these performances and I want to start off by talking about The Supporting Cast starting off with Han cha who plays Liz who is a nurse and is the best friend of Charlie and takes care of him she was fantastic in this film when you hear her story and you get her perspective you really come to appreciate the character but in the same vein you
can also look at the Liz character as an enabler in helping Charlie get the food get chicken get meatball sandwiches get pizza even though he’s on the brink of death and we’ll talk about Charlie and a little bit about the story in a second but I thought that she did such a great job of having that empathy having that compassion but at the same time having a character flaw and enabling Charlie and also again when you hear about her story it’s very tragic it’s very heartbreaking and I thought that she did such a great job
of bringing so much to this role and she added so much levity to the film as well she has some of the more lighter moments in the film and not that this film is a slapstick comedy it’s a very heavy drama but I like how Liz did bring some left he brought some of the the lighter jokes to some of the moments of the film that I definitely appreciate so I thought she was fantastic also I want to talk about Sadie Singh who plays Ellie who’s Charlie’s daughter who I’ll be honest with you all I’m
kind of split on the character that she plays Ellie both positively and negatively and it’s the reason I say it is because her role is very tricky in this film she’s tasked with being very angry and being mad and she has her reasons of doing so but at the same time the film really kind of only focuses on that element of her character traits which unfortunately kind of makes her one note and we’ll talk about that a little bit later but I appreciated what Sadie brought to this role I’m a big Sadie Singh fan I’m
a stranger things fan Max was like phenomenal in season four but I I really like her an actress and I really thought that she did a good job of really helping us understand her character and her position but also capturing the essence of anger and sadness and also being abandoned by a parent so again we’re going to get into some of the criticism a little bit later but I do appreciate what Sadie was able to bring to this character who on paper was kind of one note but now we got to talk about the man
who got a from what I understand a six to seven minute Round of Applause when they showed this at Tiff I’m talking about Mr Brendan Frazier he plays our main character Charlie and when you meet Charlie very early on the film he’s an online Professor who teaches English courses online and he never turns on his camera he never allows his students to see him because he doesn’t want his students to see who he is and immediately you understand who Charlie is and oh my goodness ladies and gentlemen when it comes to Brendan Fraser there is
just so much I can praise about his performance the way he insists his gentle approach to the role the way that you feel this tenderness to him the way that he able is to interact with the other characters the commitment to the role the physical nature of what he went through to bring this character to life in regards to behind the scenes reading upon the film he studied for months with a dancing instructor to be able to figure out how a character with this obsessive weight will be able to move around and navigate their own
home so the commitment’s there the way he conveys his emotions through his eyes in the way he delivers his lines I mean I can go on and on but at the end of the day I think it boils down to it’s his award to lose and I’m referring to the Oscars man he gives a phenomenal performance and I definitely think he will get that not only nomination I think that’s a lot but I also think that he’s going to win what a performance by Brenda Frazier I think it’s a Once in a Lifetime type of
performance I’ve seen a good amount of his films of his filmography and I know some people like it’s the Renaissance he’s coming back but I’ve been following him for the last few years watching Doom Patrol and other TV performances so I’ve always knew that he had it in him but I thought that this was just a performance of a lifetime and I thought that he will get that nomination but this brings me to a particular point in the video that I want to have a discussion and when it comes to number one the title which
is a double entender within itself because it does have a meaning when you see the film you understand the title of the well that it’s a particular poem that is very connected to our characters and particularly Charlie and his daughter and the relationship they have in this film but also from out of context when you see the title you just assume that it’s referring to his sides him being aware of him you know being viewed as someone as large like a whale but again there’s more Nuance to that but let’s have the the discussion about
the Obesity of the film of this character and the and this isn’t necessarily a negative or a positive this is just more or less a discussion so let’s talk about it now as I’ve gotten older as an individual and I’ve come to appreciate and pay attention to things within media and Cinema and as that being said I’ve become a huge advocate of representation on screen on media and and particularly being a black man in America and how I want my stories to be told in a certain light right so I can appreciate that angle especially
like I said being older of why it is important to be represented on screen and what it can mean for not just just just the moment but for future Generations ahead so we’re leading that to the film and knowing that Charlie is a character who does have obesity and Brendan Fraser himself had to put on some weight for the role but also needed to wear makeup and was fitted for Prosthetics that weighed him up to 300 plus pounds and ultimately he was I believe the character was like over 600 pounds but the question becomes okay
is this one of those situations where they picked the best person for the role or did they even audition someone that didn’t have to put on those Prosthetics that already has the the you know the lifestyle can and can relate to something on the pages and brings that authenticity to the role so I’m very curious on how you all feel about that position again no right or wrong answers but that conversation about was the right person pick for the role or was there someone else did the film writers the film creators give someone an opportunity
that can live that lives this lifestyle that could bring that authenticity to the film I’m very curious on how you all feel about that but then it brings us to the conversation or maybe debate about how the film portrays Charlie as someone who’s knocking on death’s door now without giving too much away from the film it’s just uh when you see the trailer and read the synopsis it’s Charlie he is you know at the point of his life now where he is extremely obese that it’s affecting him physically and he’s literally on the last week
of his life and he’s trying to rekindle a relationship with his daughter so it’s with then that synopsis within that story there of Charlie knocking on dev’s door because he eats a lot excessively and he refuses to go to the hospital how at that point he’s simply just giving up and again the question is how does someone that might relate to that how do they feel about the portrayal of what the film is saying about someone that has obesity right and now getting to how I personally feel about it now I think that this is
just one individual story I don’t think it’s a one size fits all type of narrative but again there are some people and it’s not to take anything away from someone that might feel offended by how this film portrays someone that has obesity and it goes back to the conversation representation topic of how people who do have obesity feel about the way their story is being portrayed that it is just a song same song and dance someone that’s obese is at the brink of death they’re gonna die they can’t control what they he they’re destroying other
people’s lives and it is just like that’s all we see in the media there’s other sides to stories that like I said as a black man there’s more than just the hood movies slavery movies drug movies there’s more to our story right so I can completely understand that narrative and then particularly doing some research and looking online in a different conversation that I found in regards to the criticism that the film has so far about the casting as well as how the film some people felt it was a mockery of obese people for example as
you all can see on the screen now from an NPR article they had some opinions they talked to one individual by the name of Aubrey Gordon who’s an Arthur and Cole host of a podcast and her podcast focuses on health and things that nature but as you all can see on the screen now this is her opinion how she felt about the film and here’s another example from a Broadway actress of how they felt about the portrayal of the film also I I found a YouTuber and I’m gonna put their Link in the description this
video as you all can see the title of the video was a fat person’s thoughts on the well now I watch I still have to finish video but I watched halfway through the video and pretty much the YouTuber saying that from her point of view the and she didn’t see the film at this point but she’s mostly referring to the play and how she felt the play was a misrepresentation of how she feels about people that have obesity so it’s a nuanced conversation we’re not going to figure it out by the end of this review
here but it’s just a conversation I want to kind of bring to the table I’m very curious on when the public sees the film how they’re going to feel about that and again there’s no right or wrong answers it’s just it’s a discussion man and this is what I love about films this is what I love about this channel in particularly and community of people that hopefully you all feel safe and can share your opinions on the subject matter so I thought it was important to have this conversation I appreciate you guys uh listening to
me and all that good stuff so with that being said we’re gonna get back into the actual film and I want to Pivot over to the criticisms I have for the movie and one thing that definitely comes to mind not knowing at first that this film was based on a display then after seeing the credits it all clicked to me and all kind of made sense because this is where one of my criticisms lie especially when we come to a certain point in the film in the second half of the film the movie has a
particular scene involving Mary who’s Charlie’s ex-wife and I found that scene to feel almost separate from anything else in the film because it literally felt like I was watching a play which isn’t like a bad thing but it like again it’s a tonal thing where you’re like we’re watching a movie and then you get into this scene here where the husband and the ex-wife are having a conversation about how things played out how things are going to play out there’s a particular plot that gets revealed in regards to how they’re going to handle their daughter
moving forward and it literally like I said it just filled out of place and I hate to point out the actress that played Mary but she just filled she didn’t feel the scene outright she didn’t the chemistry wasn’t there to me and I felt that character stood out like a sore thumb so that’s definitely a scene to me that just kind of felt out of place and just felt like I was watching a play and it felt like a total shift from the rest of the film which also brings me back to Ellie now I
mentioned earlier how I felt like she was kind of one note and just two on the nose with her attitude and how she approached the situation and I feel like the character was just so one-sided and we didn’t get to see anything else from the character until we get to like the final moments of the film so I thought it was a missed opportunity to kind of Explore More of the character Ellie because again I applaud Sadie which she was able to bring to the role but I feel like it was a disservice to not
really allow her to have more involvement into her personality within the film so this brings me to another character that I didn’t mention earlier but there is a character played by Ty Simpkins who plays Thomas who is very religious and I felt like that particular character that plot felt incomplete now I it when the film the way that they wrap up that plot felt rush and then feel urn but also to again known this is a play I don’t know how important Thomas is to the play because obviously if it’s important character to play and
obviously the person that wrote the play wrote this film they’re going to put the character in the movie but it just didn’t feel organic to the story and also this brings me back to Darren Aronofsky and knowing that his two previous films wouldn’t be a mother and the one before that was Noah he definitely has his opinions on religion and I feel like sometimes he reflects that into his art and I felt like that was like something that he I don’t want to say shoehorn or Force because again it’s based on a play but it
didn’t feel natural to the story the whole Thomas angle and it was really one of the weakest elements of the film but lastly getting to the ending without spoiling the ending it has a strong effect it’s very powerful and painful at the same time but the last scene to me just didn’t hit the way that I wanted it to in regards to the emotional conclusion to the story so again it’s a very very interesting ending and again if you know Darren Darren Aronofsky he has some very interesting ways that he ends his film so before
we get into my overall thoughts before I give you all my score for the film if you stuck around to this point in review I really appreciate you all before we wrap this thing up just a reminder to like share comment and subscribe overall I can appreciate the nuances that this film brings to the table and the levels of it expressing what heartbreak looks like through these characters perspective in the disconnect between them and how it created this massive misunderstanding which caused a lot of tension now I cannot praise enough the performance by Brendan Fraser
who gives a performance of a lifetime and I really think that he not only touched on beautiful heartfelt moments but also gave us some very haunting moments at the same time and I thought he was fantastic honestly I don’t believe it’s a film for everyone because of the representation or maybe lack of for some people but I do believe overall it’s a well-made film it does have some shortcomings it has some underdeveloped themes and characters but overall I’m gonna give this film a Solid 4 out of five for me me and that’s just my opinion
on the matter I want to know yours in the comments I’m reviewing this about two weeks before the film releases so I got to figure out what the uh the Embargo is but once you’ve seen this film we gotta talk about it let me know your pros and your con stuffs and Direction the characters the relationships the nuances you all took away the themes you took away but let’s have that conversation about the representation how did you all feel about it let’s talk about Oscar nominations and everything in between if you’re still here watching this
video I can’t thank you enough I appreciate you and I do have a message for you all something I took away from this film take care of yourself and also check on your family check on your loved ones check on your friends mental health is very important y’all so hope you all are staying safe hope you all doing well if you ever need someone to talk to your boy from movie files Ellie this here so again thank you so much from Austin’s review just again a friendly reminder to like share comment subscribe if you haven’t
already and hit that notification Bell hope you all enjoyed today’s commentary as you can see on the screen now comment join the community check out my other reviews from this year check out my most recent review and we’ll catch you all the next breakdown
