Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is billed as an inspirational comedy, probably by the Brits. Actually, it’s more of a “when hell freezes over” movie. Dr. Alfred “Fred” Jones is Britain’s leading fishing authority. o some, that may a dubious honor but to fishing enthusiasts, our Asperger’s Syndrome leading man is right up there next to God. Fred’s problem? No faith. But let’s step back a moment. Fred (Ewan McGregor) leads a pretty boring life. He has a ho-hum marriage and a job with a government-style office. One day he gets an email from Harriet Chetwode-Talbot who represents a wealthy sheik with a novel idea—strike that—a passion. Our visionary Sheik has a passion for salmon fishing and believes his passion can enrich the lives of his people. He dreams of bringing salmon fishing to the not so fish-friendly desert of Yemen.
The sheik enlists Harriet (Emily Blunt) to bring water and fish to his desert. Willing to spare no expense, Harriet is dispatched to turn the dream into a reality—no small task! Knowing nothing about fish or fishing, she turns to Fred. I think this is where the ‘when hell freezes over’ comes in. Fred thinks the project both absurd and unachievable and flatly declines to help.
About the same time, Patricia Maxwell (Kristen Scott Thomas), the Prime Minister’s overzealous Press Secretary, is taking a beating from the voting public over all the disturbing news from Afghanistan and is looking for a ‘good will’ story, fast. When someone suggests the story about the sheik’s idea, she latches on to it with all the power her office can muster. Now, this unlikely team will put it all on the line and embark on an upstream journey of faith and fish to prove the impossible, possible.
Now, if you think I’ve spoiled the movie with too much info, you’re wrong. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is directed by one of Sweden’s most renowned directors, Lasse Hallstrom. Lasse has way too many fine movies on his resume to name but Chocolat, Cider House Rules and Something to Talk About are some of my favorites. Simon Beafoy is the screenwriter and his many credits include, Slumdog Millionaire and Hunger Games sequel, Catching Fire. The cinematography is stunning and creative; I especially liked the scene when Fred is returning from his meeting with Harriet. The camera angle is from above and he appears to be swimming upstream against the flow of pedestrians.
There are references to faith. When the sheik asks Fred if he has faith he answers, “no.” When the Sheik responds that he must have faith, Fred says when things get tricky in his life he “talks to his fish.” Egyptian actor, Amr Waked, plays the sheik. He has the presence of Omar Shariff with even more mesmerizing good looks. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is an interesting journey, from private jets to tents in the desert. It is exceptionally well done and visually impactful. Of course, there is a little bit of complexity in the relationship department but nothing too unpredictable. I would love to hear your comments at chastings@rockcliff.com.
Leave a Reply