Review Roundup: Brendan Fraser Stars In THE WHALE Film Adaptation

Fresh off the best limited opening of the year, the film adaptation of Samuel D. Hunter's The Whale has expanded to nationwide theaters. Get tickets now here.

THE WHALE has been stunning audiences since its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival. It stars Brendan Fraser, Sadie Sink, Hong Chau, Ty Simpkins, and Samantha Morton.

The Whale is the story of a reclusive English teacher who attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter.

Check out what critics thought of the film below!

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Owen Gleiberman, Variety: "The Whale is based on a stageplay by Samuel D. Hunter, who also wrote the script, and the entire film takes place in Charlie's apartment, most of it unfolding in that seedy bookish living room. Aronofsky doesn't necessarily "open up" the play, but working with the great cinematographer Matthew Libatique he doesn't need to. Shot without flourishes, the movie has a plainspoken visual flow to it."

Ben Croll, The Wrap: "Fraser pulls off an impressive feat, acting as foil for the three players in his orbit while hitting intentionally contradictory notes. An English teacher, Charlie would no doubt describe his conflict as Man vs. Self, and that saddles the actor with a nimble push-and-pull. He must sell the optimism and booster good cheer he shows for others alongside the uncontrolled sorrow that has pushed him all the way to this point. To do so immobile and covered in prosthetics is no easy task, but the actor needs only his eyes and voice to get the job done. "

Ann Hornaday, The Washington Post: "Admiring Fraser's performance as a man paralyzed by grief and self-loathing in "The Whale" doesn't necessarily mean liking the movie he's in. Darren Aronofsky's adaptation of Samuel D. Hunter's play is a murky-looking, claustrophobic exercise in emotionalism at its most trite and ostentatiously maudlin."

Stephanie Zacharek, Time: "This is a story about a person in deep pain-which is to say its impulses are honorable. (It's adapted from a play by Samuel D. Hunter.) And the film is at times incredibly moving, thanks to Fraser's refined, mournful performance. Fraser wore a fatsuit to play the role, which has occasioned some critical online chatter."

Robbie Collin, The Telegraph: "The premise, especially in concert with that title, makes The Whale sound like a freak show - or worse still, an Oscar grab. (Fraser plays the role in a seamlessly realistic prosthetic suit which itself weighed more than 21 stone.) But it's actually something far rarer and more wonderful."

Soren Andersen, Seattle Times: "Hunter's screenplay is adapted from his 2012 stage play, and Aronofsky's decision to confine the picture to Charlie's cluttered apartment reveals its stage-bound roots. The disordered living space reflects the chaotic state of Charlie's mind. The place is an arena where all the characters' warring emotions are concentrated to an almost unbearable degree."

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: "I have read the play, though not seen it in production, and while limited knowledge is a dangerous thing, I can see how the right staging of this five-character, one-set parable of suffering, redemption and Christlike goodness could be effective and affecting. The movie, alas, adapted by Hunter, suffers from one of the stranger cases of directorial miscasting in recent years. Darren Aronofsky is faithful to the basic confines of the script; he opens up the action only in dreamlike flashes, so we're basically at home, in the apartment, in close quarters, the whole way."

Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian: "Fraser does an honest job in the role of Charlie, and Hong Chau brings a welcome fierceness and sinew to the drama, but this sucrose film is very underpowered."

David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter: "Adapted by Samuel D. Hunter from his play, the intense chamber drama never disguises its stage roots but transcends them with the grace and compassion of the writing and the layers of pain and despair, love and dogged hope peeled back in the central performance. Fraser makes us see beyond the alarming appearance to the deeply affecting heart of this broken man."

Brian Formo, Collider: "The Whale did not move me because most of the character interactions announced themselves loudly and with increasing frequency. It is inorganic, gimmicky, manipulative, and its lessons are simplistic. As a character, Charlie remains mostly a body. He has a kindness to him, but this role is mostly to react to the wants and needs of others. The Whale does not engage outside of the known narrative of the actor in the film - it's his comeback!"

Odie Henderson, Boston Globe: "A good director will use editing and music to guide the audience through a film's themes and to its desired emotional effect. Aronofsky has proven he can direct, so what to make of the fact that this film is so hateful and vile? "The Whale" is too obvious in its disgust for Charlie for me to read it any other way."

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Watch the trailer for The Whale here:

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