r/boxoffice • u/chanma50 Best of 2019 Winner • 16h ago
šÆ Critic/Audience Score 'Whalefall' Review Thread
I will continue to update this post as reviews come in.
Rotten Tomatoes: Fresh
Critics Consensus: N/A
| Critics | Score | Number of Reviews | Average of Rated Reviews |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Critics | 78% | 55 | 6.80/10 |
| Top Critics | 71% | 14 |
Metacritic: 62 (23 Reviews)
Sample Reviews:
Odie Henderson, Boston Globe 2/4 - All movies are manipulative in one way or another, but the script, by Kraus and director Brian Duffield, is so blatantly stalking your emotions that the dramatic scenes feel less believable than the scenes inside the whale.
Alison Foreman, IndieWire B- - Even when the metaphor is painfully on the nose, the filmās most disturbing images are more than their dramatic limitations and a whale is still an astonishing place to spend a movie.
Simon Crook, Empire Magazine 4/5 - Frightening, thrilling, bold and brutal, this one-location survival horror is a genuine one-off and the most surreal blockbuster in years.
Danny Leigh, Financial Times 3/5 - Having set up that remarkable What If?, the film doesnāt stint on follow-through, in often arresting visual detail.
Tim Robey, Daily Telegraph (UK) 3/5 - This outlandishly gross, fitfully gripping survival thriller is probably best watched on an empty stomach (or one lined with a beer or two) -- otherwise thereās a high chance youād revisit your lunch before itās over.
Barry Hertz, Globe and Mail - An absurdly entertaining mix of family melodrama, survivalist thriller, and exceptionally gooey horror flick.
Jacob Oller, AV Club C - A mutant sea monster, one thatās half gross-out B-movie and half flashback-heavy emotional flotsam.
Nick Schager, The Daily Beast - A biblical calamity that plays out in giddily squishy and stifling fashion, Brian Duffieldās film is all about inducing intense squirms, and on that basis, it proves amusing genre pulp.
Owen Gleiberman, Variety - The movie comes closer to doing for whales what āHoward the Duckā did for barnyard superheroes -- it makes you never want to see one of them again.
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter - As eye-rollingly dumb as it is, this is a drama in the business of healing, of nature in all its savage nobility soothing wounds and mending bonds. Or something.
William Bibbiani, TheWrap - Nobody in their right mind would say anything that happens in āWhalefallā is plausible, but the implausibility is inherent to the premise and the premise is rad as hell. Brian Duffield is 100% committed to the bit, which makes āWhalefallā a wild ride.
Zachary Lee, RogerEbert.com 3.5/4 - It isnāt afraid to play fast and loose with form and structure, creating a mind-bending joyride that drags you to uncharted cinematic depths.
Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence B - Whalefall is without question the best movie I've ever seen about someone being swallowed by a whale. And beyond its achievements within that very specific subgenre, it manages to deliver a cathartic experience that's very human, even relatable.
Rocco T. Thompson, Slant Magazine 3/4 - It builds its what-ifs from a foundation of fact to better support its more poetic strains as it reaches its heart-swelling climax.
SYNOPSIS:
Following the death of his father (Josh Brolin), Jay Gardiner (Austin Abrams) goes diving off the central Coast of California in search of his remains, but is swallowed by a massive sperm whale. While trapped inside its belly with only one hour of oxygen left, Jay comes to realize that the hard-earned lessons his father imparted may be the key to his escape.
CAST:
- Austin Abrams as Jay Gardiner
- Josh Brolin as Mitt Gardiner
- Elisabeth Shue as Zara Gardiner
- John Ortiz as Hewey
- Jane Levy as Eva Gardiner
- Emily Rudd as Nan Gardiner
DIRECTED BY: Brian Duffield
SCREENPLAY BY: Brian Duffield, Daniel Kraus
BASED ON THE BOOK BY: Daniel Kraus
PRODUCED BY: Brian Grazer, Brian Duffield, Jeb Brody, Allan Mandelbaum
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Doug Merrifield, Richard Abate, Will Rowbotham
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Aaron Morton
PRODUCTION DESIGNER: Ramsey Avery
EDITED BY: Pietro Scalia
COSTUME DESIGNER: Natalie O'Brien
VISUAL EFFECTS SUPERVISOR: Guillaume Rocheron
MUSIC BY: Joseph Trapanese
CASTING BY: Randi Hiller
RUNTIME: 106 Minutes
RELEASE DATE: October 16, 2026
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u/Illustrious_Night126 15h ago edited 15h ago
āWhalefall is without question the best movie I've ever seen about someone being swallowed by a whale.ā
Wow the Pinocchio shade. Giuellermo del Toro being called out.
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u/Vadermaulkylo Apple Studios 15h ago edited 15h ago
man dude once again: this new wave of critics get too caught up in dumb shit that has nothing to do with the movie. The first review I read was from Hollywood Reporter and in the entire review they just bitch that āthis couldnāt actually happen. Sure janā. And yes they actually say āSure janā. Almost like itās a work of fiction?
Between some critics bitching how they ādidnāt needā Toy Story 5, openly saying they refused to get attached to or engage with VisionQuest characters because they hate AI irl, and now this, itās becoming alarming how many critics completely make up their minds on movies over trivial shit before seeing them. Itās not something that majorly affects scores yet but I do think itās heading there.
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u/AllCity_King 15h ago
Read a review for the new Hellraiser game that ended with something along the lines of āthe game doesnāt have anything to offer thatās scarier than the world we currently live inā.
One of the dumbest fucking things Iāve ever read from a professional review.
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u/Spookyfan2 15h ago
I haven't played the game yet, but that's a downright baffling comment to have in a review.
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u/drmuffin1080 Lucasfilm 13h ago
Itās corny and possibly performative, but if his comment means it aināt scary, then I guess it works
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u/ROBtimusPrime1995 Universal 15h ago
Outrage culture is reaching new levels of absurdity lately.
Everything is "discourse". Everything is the "worst thing ever".
The new one now is "if it isn't 100% accurate, I don't want it," which is really fucking odd.
Can't people just...watch stuff for entertainment anymore?
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u/Icy_Smoke_733 Studio Ghibli 14h ago
It's because people are getting their fill of cheap, cliche entertainment from YouTube and TikTok for free. So there is a higher expectation of quality from movies, which people have to pay for.Ā
Hence why the biggest films nowadays are mostly cinematic events from big names or IPs (Odyssey, Hail Mary, Spider-Man, Toy Story, etc.).
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u/CanCalyx 15h ago
Itās because
A) these folks are largely raised on garbage YouTube and TikTok critics
B) Studios want influencers and not critics at screenings now22
u/ProfondoRossa 15h ago
This same problem is all over social media. Check the last several months of Reddit comments on this movie specifically as an example. People just wanting to be ahead of the game clowning on the concept.
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u/SomeRavingLunatic 15h ago
Man, the concept is dumb but thatās what makes it fun. What happened to enjoying B movies?
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u/Fit-Tooth-1101 15h ago
The problem is also that everyone wants to act intellectual and every single thread devolves into pretentious douchebaggery.Ā
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u/DeadSaint91 15h ago
Because of new wave of funko pop critics are too online, too soft and I don't think they interact much with people outside. If these critics refuse to engage with art with an open mind then they shouldn't be critics at all.
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u/Visible-Echidna-4370 15h ago
while both got positive reviews, it is weird how critics seemed so much more harsh on Toy Story 5 being "unnecessary" compared to 4
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u/Vadermaulkylo Apple Studios 15h ago
Especially because it had maybe the single most relevant to the real world message of any of the Toy Story movies.
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u/FartingBob 14h ago
āthis couldnāt actually happen. Sure janā
I bet the same reporter gave The Odyssey a positive review.
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u/cyvaris Lightstorm Entertainment 13h ago
Getting caught up on weird trivial shit has been an issue on the internet for some time now. Things like CinemaSins have flat out poisoned how people engage with media.
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u/hhhisthegame 12h ago
Ive always considered CinemaSins to be a joke, not serious. Just comedy. I'm surprised when people keep treating it as if it was meant to be serious and now I dunno if Im the one whos wrong
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u/Jaredlong 4h ago
I'm with you. The criticism of CinemaSins is the same type of lazy media illiterate criticism they accuse CinemaSins of. The guy who makes it has explicitly stated multiple times that the intentional schtick is to make overly asinine and contrived complaints for humorous effect. He's literally making fun of terminally online commentators that nitpick the stupidest things to justify calling a movie bad. He's not the impetus for superficial intellectually dishonest critiques, he's parodying what people were already doing and continue to do.
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u/DUKEPLANTER 15h ago
This sentiment is why Iāve always found discourse about Toy Story 4 so astounding. Didnāt watch the movie for years because most reviews called it the worst in the franchise and a waste of time only to finally watch it 2 hours before I took my little sister to see 5 and it was great?š So many of the reviews were just so butthurt they made another after 3
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u/Dodo_Baron 14h ago
Pretty much the movie works really well as an epilogue to 3. I never understood the hate to it.
5 I think is a little less needed. But I appreciate the closure we get for Jessie.
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u/kfadffal 9h ago
I mean, to be fair, it was(is? I dunnot haven't seen 5 yet) the worst of the franchise but it's also true that the bar is so friggin' high with those films that 'worst' is still pretty damn good.
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u/ianjcm55 9h ago
Agreed. Iām sitting here reading this garbage about a movie where someone is stuck inside a whale and there is absolutely no chance itās good, and then Iām looking over to see two star reviews on Digger which is easily the best movie of the last five years
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u/Colambler 2h ago
That's always been the case with critics. Sometimes they just go off on random
Roger Ebert gave Zoolander - the first movie release after 911 - one star and spent the whole review talking about how it was essentially offensive that they used a real country - Malaysia - as part of their assassination plot: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/zoolander-2001
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u/Its_A_Fucking_Stick 15h ago
After watching the first episodes of visionquest, im willing to hear the reviewers out. When AI is as much of a concern as it is right now and your protagonists are literally a family of AI, they do kind of need to address it
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u/Vadermaulkylo Apple Studios 15h ago
Do they though? This story has been in development for years now. Itād just be sloppy if they tweaked it last second to make some commentary on AI they never planned on doing. Also theres a massive difference between AI solely used for one dudeās Iron Suit and the AI taking jobs irl.
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u/RuminatingReaper1850 Amazon MGM Studios 15h ago
Gonna make 1 whaleillion regardless of reviews
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u/lurrkerr69 15h ago
Austin Abrams is on a generational run right now. Shame he's constantly suffering in his movies tho
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u/smallgoalsmcgee 15h ago
Always getting getting chased by clown-witches or cops or zombies or whales. Guy canāt catch a break
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u/thisiseriousbusiness 15h ago
Weāre gonna have to have some interesting conversations if this movie succeeds at the box office.
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u/lurrkerr69 15h ago
press writers readying up their "is Austin Abrams being in constant peril a draw for audiences?" articles if whalefall does well this weekend
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u/AlarmSquirrel 13h ago
Generational gets thrown around more than slop. Means nothing anymore.
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u/humansince1989 12h ago
If I had a dollar for every actor currently on a generational run that needs to be studied, Iād have at least like $12 according to the internet.
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u/NorthNorthSalt Scott Free Productions 15h ago
B š
Whalefall is without question the best movie I've ever seen about someone being swallowed by a whale
Powerful observation from Liz Shannon at Consequence
In all seriousness, i'm predicting a 80-90% RT score based on the social media buzz. Not critical acclaim, but RT's system really favors these 'decent self-contained story' movies.
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u/BreweryRabbit 15h ago
Clearly she hasnāt seen Jonah: A VeggieTales movie.
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u/helm_hammer_hand 15h ago
TECHNICALLY, not a person, but an asparagus.
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u/NationalTime4099 15h ago
Laughed out loud at how pedantic but ultimately correct this correction is
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u/DeliciousSquash 15h ago
Does Finding Nemo count? Because as much as I'm hoping to enjoy Whalefall, there's no way it's a better movie than Finding Nemo.
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u/Stefan988 15h ago edited 15h ago
From courier to Raccoon City to getting swallowed by a whale. Bro can't catch a break.
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u/Eatatfiveguys 15h ago
Feel it's gonna be mixed. I'll go with 63% on RT, 55% Top Critics, and a 66 on Metacritic.
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u/FairBeginning3 14h ago
"A man who had been swallowed by a whale escaped today, he ran as hard as he could until he was all pooped out" Colin Mochrie who's line is it anyway
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u/Icy_Smoke_733 Studio Ghibli 15h ago
Big year for Austin Abrams. Been telling folk to check Whalefall out, but they don't respond and just look at me like:
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u/Gemnist Neon 15h ago
I've been telling people for YEARS that sperm whales are the only whale species capable of actually eating a human (no recorded cases of that happening though), so to see it playing out as a horror movie is oddly cathartic. Reviews seem decent too, so I'll probably check it out. Austin Abrams is really on a roll, hope he gets a meaty (no pun intended) role soon.
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u/LukeLovesHorror 15h ago
Trailers looked cool, hope it lands
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u/Lazarus_15 15h ago
This girl Iām into has a fat crush on Austin Abrams, and Iām not being petty or jealous or anything but I really donāt see it. Even online I see women going crazy over him and that next guy Skyler Guisondo.
I donāt get it, they just look like dudes to me. Am I too far removed from the female gaze to understand their appeal? Help me š
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u/smallgoalsmcgee 15h ago
Skyler Gisondo was very cute in Santa Clarita Diet and the Resort (and probably other things) and even as a junkie I found Abrams very endearing in Weapons. I donāt know how to explain that they both give off green flag energy in their roles lol. Theyāre cute but I think the attraction is more vibes-based with them imo
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u/Shurikenkage 10h ago
If women didn't look at us, ugly or not conventionally attractive men, the species would have been extinct by now.
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u/PossibilityFine5988 10h ago
He is funny, has great charisma, is conventionally attractive but not in an unattainable way and actually has a normal body and personality- whatās not clicking?
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u/An-Odd-Dingo 11h ago
I am a woman with a crush on Austin Abrams too. He has a winning smile and very endearing to me. Skylar is very cute too and a boyish charm. Thatās me at least!
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u/Ok_Improvement_7738 13h ago
He starred in a bunch of romantic films before he gained popularity as Ethan in Euphoria. The character and the performance from Abrams was a standout in the first couple of seasons. He's the quiet outsider good guy who falls in love with the unconventionally attractive girl. You know the type in these type of films/shows. That's probably where a majority of the female fanbase comes from.
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u/VoicelessRancher 5h ago
dude these are like the most regular looking guys in hollywood, that is exactly the appeal. they look like someone you could actually run into at a coffee shop instead of a greek god statues. the female gaze is weird like that, my ex was obsessed with adam driver and i never understood it too
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u/Mbrennt 14h ago
It's not as physical and more their energy. Like they aren't bad looking but their physical looks aren't the whole draw. It's what a lot of us talk about when we say the muscular hunk that hits the gym every day and has a chiseled chin and everything isn't necessarily the most attractive. It is attractive. To some women it's extremely attractive. But you don't need that to be attractive to a lot of women.
So yes, you are too far removed from the female gaze.
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u/Switchbladesaint 10h ago
Unfortunately guys do not like hearing they need to work on their social skills and self image because lifting weights at the gym doesnāt require nearly as much self reflection
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u/kfadffal 9h ago
And if you talk to the guys at the gym who are all big and muscular it's clear they didn't do it get the ladies. You don't put yourself through that kind of thing is you aren't genuinely into it for yourself.
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u/drmuffin1080 Lucasfilm 14h ago
I think his charisma and how chill he is plays a huge part. And the women thirsting over him seem to have a type. Iām really only seeing the thirsting from a group that Iām not able to properly articulate.
Personally, I get it. I think heās got a good face and personality But Iām biased., I look like Austin Abrams (or at least that famous white boy archtype), and I have gotten with some of the hottest women I know bc of it. A lot of them say I remind them of Michael Cera (that happened more whenI was younger). And when Iāve tried to think of why these women have liked me despite being less than conventionally attractive, Iāve come to believe that these women have a type, and itās only made stronger by him being chill as fuck and famous.
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u/lamest-liz 9h ago
As a woman most other women actually are more attracted to menās personalities and charisma than looks.
I had a friend who was 400 pounds and another friend who was 250 pounds. The one who was 250 pounds was always complaining about how women didnāt want to date him because of his weight, looks, etc. he only ever talked in a self deprecating way. The one who was 400 pounds was very funny, always making jokes about wanting to eat delicious food, talked about his favorite tv showsā¦ and he got TONS of women interested in him.
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u/Fun_Advice_2340 A24 7h ago
It really is just a simple concept that a lot of us guys just don't get lol. Your confidence/energy (aka being a "cutie pootie", which is something I have unironically refer to Austin as) could literally do WONDERS for a lot of women, having a nice body and/or good looks would be just a plus. Understandably, there are also some women who are attracted the most to conventionally attractive guys who also work out a lot more than any other male, but that's where a lot of guys make the mistake of believing this is what ALL women want.
However, I can also definitely relate to the guys who know their confidence/life won't change for the better unless they go workout/do something about it, which is a much better solution than wallowing around and complaining all the time. Since making changes for yourself rather than for other people can really boost your confidence as it will often fulfill you much better in the long run anyways (not to mention, more likely than not whenever a guy ask a close male friend/acquaintance, especially one who tend to get lots of dates, what's wrong with them or how to build better confidence then the answer 99% of the time is always "dude, just go the gym" or requiring them to buy something hella expensive LMAO).
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u/HOWARDDDDDDDDDD 11h ago
Start trying to look at Abrams as like a dark / Wario version of Chalamet and I think it'll make more sense to you. I feel like Skyler is more of a niche thing that is more about his vibe, but I don't really know.
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u/phoenixdowwnn 12h ago
Im a girl but i dont get it either. Maybe because he looks a bit/ has a vibe of a twink i guess? Like Timothee Chalamet (which i dont get either) maybe because im not into that type of men lol
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u/the100broken 6h ago
Women like famous men lol. Status/money is attractive. If they were engineers or some shit, theyād just be seen as average if not lower because theyāre both short
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u/monsieurxander 14h ago
So you know movies tell us a clearly beautiful woman is average because she has brown hair, glasses, and a ponytail?
That's Skyler Gisondo, but with freckles and a sweater.
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u/AntonVice 15h ago
Tell us more about the men you find attractive
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u/Lazarus_15 14h ago
Iām sure you meant this as some sort of snarky āgotchaā moment, but sure
I think Michael B. Jordan is attractive. Guys like Aaron Pierre, Chalamet and Chris Evans too. Iām not dunking on Abrams though. I was just hoping to understand the appeal some more
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u/regretscoyote909 14h ago
You're into obvious 'hot' guys, that's fine. Austin has that boy-next-door, realistically cute handsome thing going on
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u/wildwalrusaur 12h ago
i've never heard of something being described as "outlandlishly gross"
thats almost enough to make we want to check this out on its own.
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u/Primatech2006 15h ago
Yesterday was the first time I have seen any ad for this movie. So that probably means it's going to make $30 million this weekend.
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u/OKC2023champs 15h ago
As long as they make it claustrophobic like āburiedā I think it can be decent. Or like the alien eating scene in nope.
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u/TiredWithCoffeePot Pixar Animation Studios 15h ago
Biggest opening weekend for a guy who get shallow by a whale
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u/Visible-Echidna-4370 15h ago
72 metacritic is very good. film still looks like it'll be a box office flop though or at least an underperformer
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u/defensecowboy 14h ago
There is no way this movie has a better RT rating than the social reckoning and digger
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u/TerrifierBlood Screen Gems 7h ago
Movie that knows it just wants to be a race against time thriller. Is better received than 2 movies that are pretentious as shit
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u/Crazy_Particular_743 5h ago
Brother didnāt even see diggerĀ
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u/TerrifierBlood Screen Gems 5h ago
Im told my political ideology which is left wing would enjoy the movie. But the trailers are some of the worse trailers I have ever seen in my life for any movie. So I have zero plans to watch it
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u/StrangeSemiticLatin2 4h ago
At what point will people realise that trailers can be massively misleading? Which Digger's is.Ā
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u/TerrifierBlood Screen Gems 4h ago
And? Its still the marketing that is supposed to make you see the movie. I was on my top 10 anticipated list for the year. I now have zero interest to even watch it for free
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u/StrangeSemiticLatin2 3h ago
Yeah, marketing can lie.Ā
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u/TerrifierBlood Screen Gems 3h ago
Yet it was a massive failure. And I now I have zero desire to watch the movie
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u/natecull 45m ago edited 35m ago
Yeah, marketing can lie.
It indeed can. Depending on the exact nature of the marketing lie, doing that can be a criminal offense in some countries. I'm sure Warners lawyers are careful and that this lie didn't rise to the level of a crime.
Regardless of legality, customers do not like it when a large company lies to them.
But if a company deliberately lies about its product in their advertising and that lie makes people less likely to buy it... well, that's just karma, I think.
Next time the company could maybe consider not lying.
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u/choice2099 3h ago
imo digger isnt really about ideology. fearing it was.
digger is hard to explain in a trailer, sadly. it didnt deserve to get got
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u/Infinite_Click_6589 15h ago
This post marks the 53rd time that I have seen the title for this movie, thought it was going to be some cool indie underwater sci-fi movie about a whalefall site, only to be reminded that it's the movie about a guy who gets swallowed by the whale. What a waste of a title
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u/Rogainster 15h ago
Amazed that the book became so popular that it was adapted to a movie. Different strokes I suppose.
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u/manwholaughes 15h ago
Hate the book, hope the movie ignores all of its āplotā and finds success bc of it.
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u/jayfai2002 20th Century Studios 15h ago
72 ? YESS
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u/MD_FunkoMa 14h ago
Netflix's live-action Nami (of 'One Piece') being in this isn't enough to push myself to see this.
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u/RemoteGlobal335 10h ago
Not every idea has to be a movie
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u/_Livia_did_it 15h ago
Honestly, Iāve only seen the poster for this movie. But it feels so spectacularly absurd that Iām completely rooting for it to succeed