Hideo Kojima, the visionary behind the Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding series, has expressed his admiration for the recent film "Whalefall." The movie, which chronicles a man's harrowing struggle for survival after being swallowed by a sperm whale, has resonated with the game director due to its thematic depth and visual execution. However, Kojima noted a peculiar side effect of his enjoyment: a newfound aversion to eating squid.
Kojima shared his thoughts on the film via social media, describing it as a "literary film" that thoughtfully explored the ecological relationship between whales and humans, as well as the complexities of a father-son bond. He also praised the film's "outstanding" visual effects. Despite the positive reception, Kojima admitted, "I don’t think I’ll be eating squid for a while." He elaborated on his lifelong fascination with whales, stemming from a childhood school project on whale ecology. This fascination has visibly influenced his own work, with whales appearing as recurring motifs in titles such as Metal Gear Solid 2, Metal Gear Solid V, and Death Stranding, often serving as symbolic representations of massive, all-encompassing entities or systems.
He also drew parallels between the film's themes and literary works like Herman Melville's "Moby Dick," further emphasizing the symbolic weight whales carry in storytelling. The film is based on Daniel Kraus's novel, with Kraus also contributing to the screenplay. Director Brian Duffield recounted the unusual research involved in depicting the whale's interior, which included studying autopsies and endoscopies of marine mammals to achieve a degree of authenticity, a process he described as a "weird time" in his life.
"Whalefall" is currently in theaters. IGN's review described the film as pulling viewers into a "frightening, incredibly gross, and panic-inducing environment that plays on primal human fears about being predator or prey."