what i find truly beautiful about this movie is the way every single character shares the same exact view of themselves.

all of them believe that they are broken people, and there is no way of fixing themselves, that they are "past redemption"

yet, each and everyone of them expresses it in a different way through their actions and emotions

the protagonist is the most obvious, he feels that he is a monster, he doesn't want to go the hospital because he did all of this on purpose. he doesn't want redemption because he is trying to literally self destruct.

the daughter has no friends, and growing up in a broken family made her think that she is not good enough to even care.

the missionary believes that his stealing and smoking has put him past redemption, so he runs away from home desperately trying to find something that will excuse his actions.

the nurse was labeled as "the black sheep of the family", and eventually accepted this label as a true part of her persona

the mother never recovered from a broken marriage and ended up mistreating her daughter, being ashamed of how she grew up to be.

all this people really are the same, they just chose different way to cope with this ideology.

some chose to eat, some drank, some started looking outward for another person to "save", and so on.

But in end the message is all the same, you shouldn't give up on yourself because you are wrong, you do matter and it's not too late.

yes, you abandoned your child when she was just a child, and yet she still loves you deep down and wants you to be part of her family.

yes you have no friends and your family wasn't the best but that doesn't mean that you will never be worth anything, someone will love you.

yes, you stole and disappointed your father, but stealing a couple grand doesn't matter. Your family cares about you more that they care about a mistake.

I could go on but i think i got the point across. this is just a beautiful beautiful movie, it's really sad and honestly tough to watch at times because it hits hard, but it's definitely an experience that we should all have.

The Whale is a heart breaking story of our main character, Charlie (Brendon Fraser), as he tries to make amends for abandoning his daughter. Charlie is obese, an ailment that has manifested itself as a coping mechanism for a life of regret. In every scene and interaction this regret is worn by Charlie as a cloak of his past that will stay with him until his dying breath. This character is an immense undertaking and Brendon Fraser plays him perfectly. The emotion he delivers is palpable, which lends itself so seamlessly to scenes of raw sadness and despair. Not only is Fraser a highlight, but the entire supporting cast does an excellent job. Hong Chau is superb, and despite her tough, no nonsense, science focused exterior hides a deep and genuine connection with Charlie. She is incredibly hurt by the way he is treating his body, but is defenseless to his desires, resulting in her to continually feed his addiction. It is a brutal back and forth that is tackled with immense care. Sadie Sink is great as well, she is delivers a brutal performance that leaves the character of Ellie easily hatable with very little redeemable qualities. I understand that this was the point of her character, and by no means is this a knock on Sink's performance, but it felt like a bit much. She was too cruel, to the point of unbelievability, which took a bit away from the message that was trying to be delivered. The pace was a bit slow for my liking. I felt as if the Thomas subplot was a bit pointless and could have been cut from the movie with no ill effects. But despite my minor complaints, the movie is carried by fantastic performances, amazing cinematography and intense emotions that will leave many viewers pleased with their experience, but will not be for everyone.

Score: 82%
Verdict: Great

FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/the-whale-spoiler-free-review-lff-2022

"The Whale earns its place in the "most tearful films of the year" list as it moves slowly yet efficiently towards its overwhelmingly emotional ending, especially elevated by the most subtly powerful & irrefutably moving performance of Brendan Fraser's career.

The rest of the cast contributes to the construction of a character with whom tremendous compassion is produced, but it isn't an easily digestible movie due to its disturbing, uncomfortable moments.

Darren Aronofsky presents a depressing, passionate, and, above all, brutally honest story about trauma, acceptance, and positivity. The filmmaker's lack of restraint may be a trigger for some, but the impact of his messages couldn't be more memorable.

Bring tissues."

Rating: B+

I doubt I can add much more to what has already been said about 'The Whale', but in a word: Bravo!

Brendan Fraser truly is sensational in this role. I heard about all the acclaim and seen a few of the standing ovations he has received and all I can say is that it is unequivocally deserved. Truly outstanding from the first scene (yes, even with that... ha) to the very last. It's great to see the dude that I first saw as a kid in 'George of the Jungle' well and truly back in the game.

One thing about Fraser getting all the (undoubtedly merited) plaudits from this Darren Aronofsky flick is that I didn't know what to expect from the support cast, and man are there some absolutely stellar performances behind Fraser. Sadie Sink, Ty Simpkins and Samantha Morton are top notch, though Hong Chau is a cut above that trio - brilliant stuff from her!

There are some powerful scenes in there. I'm not one to cry with fictional works (my brain automatically knows it's 'fake', I can't help it) but man even I got major goosebumps and gut punches (pardon the pun?) from what's portrayed onscreen. Fraser, and Chau, are naturally the major reasons for that, but everyone - on and off the screen - deserves big props for this 2022 film.

The definition of a must-watch.

write something honest

Any movie directed by Darren Aronofsky contains a lot of violent scenes that are unfamiliar and hard on the eyes to see. Darren Aronofsky is a director whose work must be eagerly awaited because one of his films, Requiem of Dream 2000, is one of my favorites.

The most important event in the movie The Whale is the star Brendan Fraser, after suffering from many health problems, especially with the spine, and was forced to perform surgeries, in addition to the withdrawal of lights and fame from him, and his playing movie roles that didn't achieve wide success.

Brendan Fraser played a terrible role that deserves an Academy Award due to his genius performance, and you do not expect this wonderful acting performance from him, especially since he is an actor who is very good at comedy roles. He did a lot of dramatic work, but he didn't reach perfection like the one in the movie The Whale.

This amazing drama was like a oneman show although the other actors did well but the main reason for my admiration for the movie is Brendan Fraser. It was the make-up and the way the breathing was unbelievable and it's mind blowing how someone can pull off such a role

The film was shot in only one location, with the exception of the flashback scenes. Sadie Sink It was provocative from the first minutes, getting on your nerves and pushing you to throw something on the visual medium through which you watch the movie, whether it is a mobile phone, a laptop, or even in theaters.

Hong Chau has an incredible charisma and addition to any work, even if she didn't appear much, and I wish to see her in many scenes, she is wonderful.