Rating 7/10
Pop quiz! What happens when a whale dies and sinks to the ocean floor? In marine biology, it’s called a “whale fall,” a remarkable natural phenomenon in which the animal’s enormous carcass nourishes countless marine creatures. It’s a remarkable natural phenomenon in which death sustains new life. It’s also a fitting metaphor for a movie about the troubled relationship between a father and son.
Jay Gardiner (Austin Abrams) ventures into the Pacific Ocean off the California coast. He’s hoping to recover the remains of his deceased father (Josh Brolin). However, his search takes a terrifying turn when he encounters a giant squid being hunted by a colossal sperm whale. As the squid’s tentacles entangle with Jay’s diving equipment, the leviathan swallows them both whole. Trapped inside the monstrous creature with only an hour of oxygen remaining, Jay must find a way to escape before his air runs out.
This joins a peculiar little subgenre of survival thrillers that proves you don’t need much room to generate an enormous amount of suspense. 127 Hours and Buried are other examples. Director Brian Duffield takes the concept to imaginative extremes. Sure, being swallowed by a whale is bad enough. But now Jay has to deal with what it’s like inside. The inside of a living creature becomes a claustrophobic prison.
Austin Abrams has been making quite an impression lately, from Weapons and Resident Evil to briefly stealing attention from Brad Pitt and George Clooney in Wolfs in 2024. He’s an immensely likable presence here, effectively conveying Jay’s mounting desperation. His fear is palpable. The sound of his labored breathing is haunting, and the increasingly dire circumstances become almost unbearable. Flashbacks involving his estranged father, Mitt (Josh Brolin), reveal a troubled relationship that gives the story surprising emotional weight. I was just as captivated by their fractured bond as I was by Jay’s desperate struggle to stay alive.
The impressive sound design, cinematography, and other technical elements heighten the tension. You can practically feel the walls closing in. Admittedly, the premise is stretched a little thin over its 106-minute runtime. The film starts running out of new ideas long before Jay runs out of oxygen. A tighter 90 minutes might have packed an even greater punch.
Still, Whalefall is a fascinating blend of suspense and family drama. Who knew that confronting death would actually be a path to embracing life? It may carry a little extra blubber, but it certainly makes a splash.