Powerful forces at play

The director Darren Aronofsky has a reputation for films with visual flair, powerful central performances which focus on the body's physicality, as well as a 'more is more' philosophy (such as The Wrestler, Black Swan, Noah and Mother!). His latest film, The Whale, received extended standing ovations when it premiered at the Toronto and Venice film festivals, and its star Brendan Fraser is odds-on favourite for Best Actor at this year's Oscars. It arrives in cinemas laden with expectations.

Fraser plays Charlie, who is morbidly obese, housebound, and facing his own mortality. He is visited daily by Liz (Hong Chau), who clearly cares for him, although the origin of their connection is only later revealed. Charlie is estranged from his daughter Ellie (Sadie Sink), and he is determined to try and reconnect with her before it's too late.

Given that Charlie is 600lbs in weight, Fraser – who is himself large by Hollywood standards – plays the part in a 'fat suit'. The use of fat suits has become increasingly controversial in the light of the body positive movement. We have to some extent moved on from Shallow Hal (2001), where the central joke was Gwyneth Paltrow looking fat: for example, it's now possible to commission three seasons of Shrill (2019-21), Lindy West's semi-autobiographical comedy drama, led by two self-identified fat women (Aidy Bryant and Lolly Adefope). No-one would claim that fat-shaming is a thing of the past, but at least now, most creatives picking up a fat suit recognise they need to be able to justify it.

In the case of The Whale, the justification rests with Charlie having an eating disorder: it has brought him to a point of chronic ill-health, possibly death. Using an actor in a fat suit allows Aronofsky to externalise the extremeness of Charlie's situation, and to show the extent of the damage of his self-destructive and addictive behaviour – just as he showed the damage to Natalie Portman's body in Black Swan. Intentionality does matter, and I certainly felt Aronofsky's intentions were to humanise someone who is normally universally reviled. I was not convinced he quite succeeded. Charlie hates himself, which we see through his lack of self-care and his food addiction. But this self-hatred washes over everything so powerfully, it's difficult for us as viewers not to join in with the revulsion the first time we see Charlie standing up, or naked in the shower.

Fraser is, however, an inspired piece of casting: he is an actor who has always exuded gentleness and wears his heart on his sleeve. His beautiful melodic voice and soulful eyes do at times transcend his physicality, and he gives this part his all. Unfortunately I remained largely unmoved, for which I blame the script. Samuel D Hunter rewrote his play for the screen, but his lack of experience – and possibly talent – shows. There's an unbelievable sub-plot involving a young man with Evangelical beliefs (Ty Simpkins), and the characterisation of Ellie is two-dimensional (has Hunter ever met a teenage girl from this century?). Even a director of Aronofsky's talent cannot subvert the staginess of the whole endeavour. Nonetheless The Whale is still worth seeing for its central performance, and a serious attempt to understand the powerful forces behind eating disorders.

Kate Johnstone

For me, what this film did well was demonstrate Charlie's struggles in managing multiple physical and mental health presentations, alongside navigating his sexuality in a predominately heterosexual or heteronormative world. This seemed to highlight diversity, depth and complexities across lived experience of obesity, and the role of psychological practice in supporting people living with obesity. 

The exclusive focus on Charlie within a confined, dark and secluded apartment seemed to personify the experiences of separation, 'otherness' and difference from a society that prioritises ableism, activity and idealised versions of beauty. Charlie's connection to food could be viewed as his preferred coping style, obtaining a sense of control in managing frustrations; or as strategies to provide instant gratification and relief. The graphic and detailed depiction of Charlie's health and mental health struggles, alongside numerous examples of emotional and verbal abuse, may have enhanced our insights into the traumatic and painful experiences that are perhaps so often hidden, silenced or not talked about. 

Liz, as a paid carer, supports Charlie with various daily living tasks, which revealed important insights into mixed service quality experiences and potential psychosocial stressors and experiences encountered by carers. Charlie's experiences with his estranged family establishes insight into the powerful role family connections may play, both positive and negative, for someone living with health conditions. Charlie's aspirations to repair his relationship with his daughter, in part to provide him with a sense of purpose, shows family connection as an important, protective and motivational force. 

The numerous examples and metaphors used provided realistic, memorable, vibrant and insightful realities, rather than the arguably detached clinical descriptions of obesity in diagnostic manuals. We discover Charlie, as a human, attempting to maintain a sense of comfort, dignity and resilience, despite an onslaught of daily challenges. I hope that Fraser's powerful performance has left the audience with a more compassionate and empathetic insight into Charlie's difficulties in managing physical and mental health multi-morbidities. 

Dr Jan Smith, Lecturer in Psychology and Health Psychologist based at Glasgow Caledonian University.