Thrillers have transpired within a broad range of environments. Yet few can have been as extreme as the setting in which the main character in the drama “Whalefall” (20th Century) finds himself.
As the title hints, like Jonah and the Disney version of Pinocchio before him, our teen protagonist — scuba diver Jay Gardiner (Austin Abrams) — is swallowed by a whale. As Jay struggles to survive and escape, viewers will have to contend with sights calculated to disturb their own digestion.
As for the film’s premise, no such situation has ever been documented in real life. But experts contend that it is — just barely — within the realm of possibility.
Jay has problems on land long before he gets trapped. These mainly consist of lingering issues with his overbearingly gruff father, Mitt (Josh Brolin). Mitt, the operator of a tour boat off the coast of Monterey, California, considers Jay undisciplined.
After being diagnosed with terminal mesothelioma, Mitt decides to end it all. As the movie opens, he straps on weights and commits suicide by dropping into the water. Thereafter he’s seen in flashbacks.
The empty-casket burial that follows leaves Jay dissatisfied. So he takes to the deep in search of some remnant of dad’s body, if only a few bones. There he witnesses the battle between a giant squid and a sperm whale. Becoming entangled in one of the squid’s tentacles, Jay — along with his captor — is gobbled up in short order.
Jay has only an hour of oxygen in his tank. So he’d better learn to profit from Mitt’s remembered life lessons pronto.
Along with the ick factor, the script — adapted from his novel by co-writer Daniel Kraus in collaboration with director Brian Duffield — sometimes descends into “Little Mermaid” style cuteness as when depicting the conversations Jay has with the glowing jellyfish he uses for illumination. Yet Mitt’s wisdom and Jay’s ingenuity do lend some gravitas to the proceedings.
The film contains a suicide, much gore, disturbing situations and images, at least one profanity and occasional rough language. The OSV News classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
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