Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale fails to beat his Requiem for a Dream score on Rotten Tomatoes
A lot of people - particularly Brendan Fraser fans - were very excited for the recent release of The Whale, but it's not proven to be Darren Aronofsky's biggest hit on Rotten Tomatoes.
The director's 2000 drama Requiem for a Dream has a 78 percent score from critics, compared to 65 percent score for his most recent flick.
His 2010 film Black Swan has a better critical rating still at 85 percent, while 2008 movie The Wrestler earned an all but unbeatable 98 percent score.
Fraser fans won't be disappointed by The Whale though, as his performance has been widely praised - more so than the film.
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The Washington Post said 'Brenda Fraser is great, the movie not so much', while Rolling Stone declared: "Brendan Fraser deserves an Oscar for The Whale. He also deserves a better movie."
The drama follows a 600lb man called Charlie (Fraser) as he tries to reconnect with his teenage daughter.
Fans of Fraser have been celebrating the so-called Brenaissance, which has seen the much-loved actor return to our screens; however, critic Katie Rife warned the film might not be for everyone.
Taking to Twitter back in September, she wrote: "I can’t recommend in good conscience that fat people watch The Whale.
"I can’t recommend that skinny people watch it either, since it reinforces the notion that fat people are objects of pity who have brought their suffering upon themselves through lack of coping skills."
She added that the movie featured 'massive red flags' for eating disorders and fat phobia, and she found it 'incredibly triggering'.
"You can tell that no actually fat peoples were involved in the production," she wrote, adding: "I’m really feeling like s**t after that viewing experience. There’s a scene where the main character drops a key and can’t pick it up, and PEOPLE WERE LAUGHING."
You won't be surprised to hear that Rife's review was pretty damning.
Writing for Polygon, she said: "In The Whale, Aronofsky posits his sadism as an intellectual experiment, challenging viewers to find the humanity buried under Charlie’s thick layers of fat.
"That’s not as benevolent of a premise as he seems to think it is. It proceeds from the assumption that a 600-pound man is inherently unlovable."
However, if you're a huge Fraser fan and you've not been dissuaded by the above warnings, it sounds like you won't be disappointed.
Rife wrote: "Brendan Fraser is very good, and most of the humanity/sensitivity/sympathy in the movie comes from his performance."
If youve been affected by any of the issues in this article and would like to speak with someone in confidence, call the BEAT Eating Disorders helpline on 0808 801 0677. Helplines are open 365 days a year from 9am–8pm during the week, and 4pm–8pm on weekends and bank holidays. Alternatively, you can try the one-to-one webchat
Topics: TV and Film, Brendan Fraser
Jake Massey