The Shipping News (2001)

An emotionally beaten man with his young daughter moves to his ancestral home in Newfoundland to reclaim his life.

Director:

Lasse Hallström

Writers:

Annie Proulx (based on the novel by) (as E. Annie Proulx), Robert Nelson Jacobs (screenplay)

Stars:

Kevin Spacey, Julianne Moore, Judi Dench

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 2 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kevin Spacey	...	Quoyle
Julianne Moore	...	Wavey Prowse
Judi Dench	...	Agnis Hamm
Cate Blanchett	...	Petal
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Tert Card
Scott Glenn	...	Jack Buggit
Rhys Ifans	...	Beaufield Nutbeem
Gordon Pinsent	...	Billy Pretty
Jason Behr	...	Dennis Buggit
Larry Pine	...	Bayonet Melville
Jeannetta Arnette	...	Silver Melville
Robert Joy	...	EMS Officer
Alyssa Gainer	...	Bunny Quoyle
Kaitlyn Gainer	...	Bunny Quoyle
Lauren Gainer	...	Bunny Quoyle

Storyline

An inksetter in New York, Quoyle returns to his family's longtime home, a small fishing town in Newfoundland, with his young daughter, after a traumatizing experience with her mother, Petal, who sold her to an illegal adoption agency. Though Quoyle has had little success thus far in life, his shipping news column in the newspaper "The Gammy Bird" finds an audience, and his experiences in the town change his life. Then he meets the widow Wavey...

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Plot Keywords:

newspaper | ship | wake | husband wife relationship | canada | 

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Taglines:

Dive Beneath The Surface

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some language, sexuality and disturbing images

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax Films cast, music, trailer [United States] NZZ Online - Neue Zürcher Zeitung (German)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 January 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Atando cabos

Filming Locations:

Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$35,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$318,502, 23 December 2001, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$11,434,216

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$13,256,225

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Newfoundland band Great Big Sea very much wanted to have music in the soundtrack, so they "seeded" the stereos in Director Lasse Hallström's and stars' B&B with their CDs, hoping that the music would catch their attention. It did, and the band has five songs in the movie, four in the diner scenes and one at the party. The songs are not contained in the movie's official soundtrack however, a film score composed by Christopher Young.

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Goofs

When Quoyle and Wavey are eating their boxed seal flipper pies, the grease stains on the boxes change from shot to shot.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Quoyle: [father teaching him literally to sink or swim]
[voice-over]
Quoyle: I used to imagine that I'd been given to the wrong family at birth, and that somewhere in the world my real people longed for me. From where my father stood, my failure to dog-paddle was only the first of many failures. Failure to speak clearly, failure to sit up straight, failure to make friends every time we moved to another dreary upstate town. In me, my father recognized a failed life. His own.

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: The Shipping News (2002)

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Soundtracks

The Jolly Butcher
Traditional
Arranged by Sean McCann, Alan Doyle, Bob Hallett (as Robert Hallett) & Darrell Power
Performed by Great Big Sea
Courtesy of Warner Music Canada

User Reviews

Spacey and Hallstrom shine in a moving story

Director Lasse Halstrom continues to prove himself to be outstanding at presenting sensitive human dramas with this touching film about a broken man's retreat to his ancestral roots. This poignant tale unwinds deliberately and delicately as each of the main characters shares his or her dark secrets buried in the past.

Halstrom is an inspired actors' director who entices outstanding performances from his troupe. He has a wonderful ability to make simple characters appear bigger than life. I continue to admire his unobtrusive presentation, forgoing ostentatious directorial stylizing in favor of simple shots that let the story and the characters dominate. The cinematography and choice of locations in this film are understated and lovely without the need for garishness.

The acting is superb. Kevin Spacey, as Quoyle, once again shows his range, taking on an emotionally crippled character that is quite unlike the confident and clever characters that jump off his resume. Spacey relinquishes all traces of the cockiness that is his trademark and brilliantly renders a pathetic nebbish whose greatest daily struggle is to overcome his own ennui. For Spacey to suppress his natural dynamism to slip this character on so effectively is a testimony to his excellence as an actor.

While this is clearly Spacey's film, the supporting cast of accomplished veterans weaves a splendid tapestry. Julianne Moore is excellent as Quoyle's love interest with a delicate portrayal of a character that is simultaneously supportive and insecure. Judi Dench is marvelous as Quoyle's crusty old aunt, who drags him back to Newfoundland to find himself among the ashes of his unseemly clan. Cate Blanchett is bodacious as the impulsive vamp who ravishes Quoyle and stays with him only long enough to give him a daughter. Scott Glenn is terrific as the cantankerous publisher of the local newspaper who turns Quoyle from a typesetter into a reporter.

This film is not for everyone. It is extremely deliberate and will fray the patience of the average viewer. However, for those who have a love of human interest stories with flawed but lovable characters, this will be a treat. I rated it a 9/10. It is a gem of human foibles and interactions that is moving and insightful.