Charlie's late boyfriend Alan was the son of the head of the church and a devout follower. When his father found out about Alan's relationship with Charlie, he exiled him from the church, which is what sent Alan into a depressive episode that eventually led to his death.
Charlie hopes to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter Ellie, whom he abandoned eight years ago when leaving his wife Mary to be with his lover Alan.
We learn that Liz's brother, Alan, was Charlie's romantic partner, as well as a member of the New Life church. Liz blames New Life for her brother's extreme unhappiness—because he was told his sexuality went against the will of God—which eventually led to Alan jumping off a bridge and killing himself.
The Whale ending explored Charlie's desire to help Ellie find happiness before he dies. This is the only way he feels will absolve him of his past mistakes. Thomas also wants to be redeemed by bringing Charlie back to religion and puts forth tremendous effort to do so.
THE WHALE Clip - "You Left Me For Your Boyfriend!" (2022)
What happened to the boyfriend in the movie The Whale?
After begging Ellie to read the essay aloud to him, an emotional Ellie reads it to him as Charlie stands up and attempts to walk over to her. As Ellie concludes her reading, Charlie begins to float before being engulfed in white light - indicating his death and passing over to the afterlife.
Having grown angry at the world due to him abandoning her and her mother for his late boyfriend Alan, she acts hostile and abusive to anyone she comes close to and wants absolutely nothing to do with Charlie, who makes efforts to try and reconnect with her.
Religious trauma leading to suicide, love, loss, secrets, regret, redemption, and binge eating disorder are themes in Darren Aronofsky's The Whale. Throughout the movie, Charlie inflicted more pain and trauma on his body with every episode of binge eating. He eats to numb his pain but also sadly to harm himself.
The Whale is not a true story but is based on a 2012 play by Samuel D. Hunter, who also wrote the film. Dale Calandra played the original Charlie in a similar transformation to Fraser's for The Whale movie, during the play's original run at the Victory Gardens Biograph Theater in Chicago.
Charlie eats to sadly harm himself. He is the manifestation of trauma. That what he puts into his body for all that harm that he has endured all his life, he's been derided. It's manifest on who he is as a human being, that's a lot of pain for this man.
The religious themes of the movie suggest that Charlie did in fact die and go to heaven in the end, but they may have just alluded to a kind of spiritual peace or death of ego that does not necessarily imply a physical death.
In the movie "The Whale", Brendan Fraser wore a fat suit to portray his character, Charlie. The suit was designed by Tony Gardner and his team at Alterian Inc. Fraser gained some weight for the role, but the majority of his appearance was achieved through the use of the fat suit and prosthetics.
Liz – She is a nurse. Hodgins called her Charlie's "enabler" because she feeds him junk food despite his enormous weight and her own pleading with him to get better medical care. Ellie – Charlie and Mary's daughter.
Why doesn t Charlie go to the hospital in The Whale?
Liz gets Charlie regulated and urges him to go to a hospital because he is at risk for congestive heart failure with high blood pressure, but he says he cannot since he does not have life insurance.
After Alan's death, Charlie's grief turned into depression and led him to develop a binge eating disorder. His unhealthy diet is a way for him to deal with negative emotions.
Emphasizing whole, nutrient-rich foods over processed options, Fraser's approach underscores the adage "you are what you eat." His diet focused on lean proteins, vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, facilitating not just weight loss but improved overall health.
No – the film is not based on a true story and is almost completely a work of fiction, even if writer Samuel D Hunter has said that certain aspects of the plot are semi-autobiographical.
The Whale tackles themes of redemption, being oneself, and dealing with grief. Brendan Fraser showcased that and ultimately won an Oscar for his performance as Charlie. The Whale ending brought the powerful and intense drama to a conclusion that requires some more analysis.
Why is The Whale being accused of fatphobia? Some of the film's critics believe it perpetuates tired tropes of fat people as suffering, chronically depressed and binge eating.
After its premiere at the 2022 Venice Film Festival — where Fraser was moved to tears during the six-minute ovation that followed the screening — the film was criticized for its portrayal of people affected by obesity and was accused of perpetuating anti-fat stereotypes.
"The way the play ends is, Ellie has the last line of the essay: 'It made me feel glad for my…' And she's cut off by the stage direction – 'a sharp intake of breath'. 'Charlie looks up, and has a sharp intake of breath. End of play. ' I actually didn't know about the beach scenes until I saw a rough cut.
Around 20 or so years ago, Charlie met and fell in love with a woman named Mary. The two started dating and eventually had a daughter named Ellie. At some point they were also married.
But Fraser has his reasons; issues with his own health and his mothers who has since passed away, personal issues, and being the target of sexual harassment have been cited as reasons he left and stayed away. A journey from which, according to his last performance, he seems to have recovered successfully.
