First and foremost, it must be said that Whalefall is undoubtedly an extremely ambitious and original film. The mere pitch of its concept sounds fairly unadaptable - much better suited to the confines of the page - so there is commendation purely in the attempt. However, in terms of evaluating whether the film actually works, I’m not so certain. Whalefall is tense, claustrophobic and, at times, so disgusting it will have you physically recoiling in your seat, but it is not what I would describe as an enjoyable trip to the cinema nor a particularly moving one, despite its copious attempts to be.
...Abrams’ solo performance does a lot of heavy-lifting in terms of keeping you engaged with the film...
In terms of the positives which stood out to me, the sound design made all of the underwater sequences incredibly immersive - almost too immersive at points! - and the direction of scenes from both inside and outside the whale, particularly when Jay is first swallowed, was very technically impressive, despite the handheld camera style sometimes making our understanding of the film’s geography slightly skewed. The largely one-setting component of Whalefall means Abrams’ solo performance does a lot of heavy-lifting in terms of keeping you engaged with the film, with his depiction of Jay’s emotions ranging convincingly from despair to hysterics. The trials he faces as he tries (and repeatedly fails) to escape grant the film an air of entrapment that is palpable through the screen and the film is undoubtedly at its strongest when it’s leaning into this.
Aside from the whale guts, the heart of the film is Jay's inner world as he is coming to terms with his father’s death. The considerable time dedicated to flashbacks within the film spoon feeds you the picture of a disconnected and tumultuous father-son relationship, specifically Mitt’s unerring frustrations with Jay’s inability to live up to his hefty expectations. But, despite Abrams and Brolin’s best efforts, the emotional core of Whalefall is largely undercut by heavy-handed dialogue that makes the emotional sequences come across as trite as opposed to heartfelt.
The film is weakest in its latter half where... the flashbacks of moments with his father become increasingly abstract...
The film is weakest in its latter half where the longer Jay spends inside the whale, the more significant his detachment to reality becomes and, as a consequence, the flashbacks of moments with his father become increasingly abstract. Jay begins conversing with his father, even seeing him as an extension of the whale, which is meant to signify the processing his grief as he finds the closure he never received in reality. Whilst I’m sure this worked effectively in print, the clunky writing and presentation of Mitt’s character as overly antagonistic meant I remained disconnected from their relationship and caused the film’s emotional climax to fall flat for me. By the end, I was more just watching to see whether Jay would escape the whale as opposed to feeling any great attachment towards the characters.
Despite its fairly limited setting, Whalefall is many things - a monster movie told from within the belly of the beast, an escape film, a family drama and a tale about self-discovery through the navigation of grief. For me, there was too great a struggle to balance these components, both narratively and tonally, which had a detrimental impact on my enjoyment of the film. If you’re craving a fun cinema trip centred around Austin Abrams’ lead character having a terrible day, you’re guaranteed to walk out of a Resident Evil screening feeling a lot more satisfied and having had a lot more fun. On the off chance you do, however, happen to be craving a graphic biology lesson about a whale’s insides that will leave you feeling tense and rather disgusted then boy, do I have the film for you!