STACK #222 April 2023

MOVIE FEATURE

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GOLDEN BOY

STACK chats with Oscar-winner Brendan Fraser about the role and movie that revived his career, TheWhale . Words Gill Pringle P roving that everyone loves an underdog and a heartwarming comeback story, this year’s Oscar for Best Actor went to a

group Obesity Action Coalition (OAC).

THE TITLE EXPLAINED Any concern about the possible insensitivity of the movie’s title is dispelled once it’s understood that Moby Dick factors prominently in the story, both literally and thematically. Charlie and Ahab are not so different underneath it all; both men are caught up in the pursuit of a dream, intoxicated with the could-have been, and obsessed with the fantasy of another future.

In addition to advising on language and logistics within the script, the OAC put them in touch with people willing to speak candidly about their lived experience with obesity. ”Weight bias is one of the last frontiers of human beings finding ways to diminish one another,” says Fraser. ”Too often, people of Charlie’s size are invisible, known only by their families or their caretakers... What I learned from talking with people is that, like everyone, they want their stories to be told, and they want to be treated fairly and honestly. And for me, that was another drive to aim for complete authenticity.” The Whale offers

guy who had almost thrown in the towel after witnessing his once brilliant career crumble before his eyes. The emotion in L.A.’s Dolby Theatre was palpable as Brendan Fraser took his rightful place on the stage. ”I’m grateful to [director] Darren Aronofsky for throwing me a creative lifeline and hauling me aboard the good ship The Whale ,” said the visibly tearful actor, clutching his golden statue. Fraser hit the dizzying heights of Hollywood fame with his roles in The Mummy , George of the Jungle , and Gods and Monsters , before a painful divorce, multiple surgeries, and an alleged 2003 sexual assault took their toll on him. Some critics might dismiss his character, Charlie, in The Whale as nothing more than an overweight man who has brought misery upon himself, but the actor argues that he is a superhero. ”He’s a husband, a lover, a teacher, a human being, and everything that goes into it. And if he was a superhero, his secret superpower would be that he can identify and see the good in others and bring that out when they can’t do that on their own. But Charlie can’t do that for himself, although he sets up the tension for the story that we see in a stroke of tragic, dramatic inspiration,” he tells STACK . Immersed in prosthetics and working with a body movement coach, Fraser filmed the role in just 32 days with only

Brendan Fraser as Charlie

response to bidding farewell to the man and, of course, seeing it onscreen maybe a year later, I had the very distinct experience of going, ’Who is that guy?’ I mean, it’s me but it presented as a work that was new to me, and it affected me deeply as it has done for many others,” he recalls. An English teacher living with severe obesity, Charlie knows his time is running out. And, as he makes a last bold attempt to reconcile with his broken family, he is forced to confront – with a full heart and fierce wit – long-buried traumas and unspoken love that have haunted him for decades. The movie – and Samuel D. Hunter’s 2012 acclaimed play upon which it is based – has sparked multiple conversations. Keenly aware of the importance of proper representation, Aronofsky and Fraser

much more than just darkness, however. It’s a soaring character study of a man wrestling with the enormity of his regret, the duty of fatherhood, and the feasibility of goodness itself. At its core, it’s a story about transformation and transcendence, a journey through the depths of grief towards the possibility of salvation.

DYK?

Brendan Fraser’s incredible transformation by prosthetics makeup artist Adrien Morot took over six hours each day.

consulted with Dr. Rachel Goldman, a psychologist specialising in the treatment of obesity, and with advocacy

three weeks of rehearsal. The process was both spiritual and cathartic. ”I did have an emotional

• The Whale is out on Apr 19

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14 APRIL 2023