Movie Review: The Grand Seduction (2013)

Genre: Comedy  

Director: Don McKellar  

Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Taylor Kitsch  

Running Time: 115 minutes  

Synopsis: The tiny harbour village of Tickle Head, Newfoundland, is suffering economic malaise due to the closure of cod fishing. Unemployed fisher Murray (Brendan Gleeson), his friend Simon, and banker Henry are desperate to attract a new petrochemical factory to the area, but the deal hinges on securing a resident doctor in the village. When Dr. Paul Lewis (Taylor Kitsch) arrives for a month, Murray mobilizes all the residents to embellish the realities of village life to convince Paul to stay permanently. Postmistress Kathleen (Liane Balaban) is the only local resident reluctant to play along.

What Works Well: This remake of a Quebec production benefits from a laid back attitude, rustic edge-of-the-continent scenery, and salt-of-the-earth characters. The comedy is underpinned by serious issues including the declining traditional fishing industry, erosion of dignity due to living on welfare, and families split apart in search of better fortunes. The running gags are strong, including the villagers pretending to like cricket (Paul's favourite sport), listening in on Paul's phone calls, planting money for him to stumble upon, and artificially elevating his hapless fishing skills.

What Does Not Work As Well: The fundamental premise is, of course, rickety (the factory can surely provide a doctor), and the portrayed process for selecting this village for an investment is amateurish. The longish running length is padded with some repetitive beats and unnecessary scenes, while the ending is both predictable and emotionally truncated.

Key Quote:

Simon (watching cricket on TV): It's like watching baseball, only longer.

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