Des saumons dans le désert

With a title like Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, it's either a story about the impossible, or that which deals with fishing. It's thankfully the former which makes it a little more engaging and less of a focus on what could be a solitary activity, and a romance-comedy-drama that centers about the theme of hope, even though this British film has plenty of elements to keep one entertained, especially the good ol British wit and humour that comes fast and furious when the need calls for it.

Directed by Lasse Hallstrom whose last film was an adaptation of Nicholas Sparks' Dear John, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is based on the novel by Paul Torday, that tells the unlikely romance that sparked between Dr Fred Jones (Ewan McGregor) and investment consultant Harriet Chetwode-Talbot (Emily Blunt) while working on a theoretically possible project funded by a rich Yemeni Sheikh Muhammad (Amr Waked). Dr Jones, the bureaucrat stuck in a dead end job and happily coasting along in spite of having useless superiors, is the initial skeptic, preferring the status quo than to question and set challenges for himself, being the expert on fishing and a mean fly-fisher himself, while Harriet is that can-do go-getting consultant who doesn't take no for an answer, herself in a sub story arc involving a British soldier sent to the frontlines in Afghanistan.

Together, they work under a programme mooted by the Sheikh to bring salmon fishing to his country, which of course has plenty of detractors especially from extremists who see this as a waste of resources spent on infidel activities involving the West, especially so since Kristin Scott-Thomas' thrash talking Bridget Maxwell, the publicist for 10 Downing Street, sees it as opportunity to raise the Anglo-Yemeni friendship and profile. The character of Bridget Maxwell is probably the one bringing in most of the laughs for her potty mouth ways, with expletives almost always finding their way into her communications, verbal, over the internet, or otherwise, and you'd wonder just how the Prime Minister's Office could have survived one PR disaster after another.

Most of the narrative circled around the friendship and relations formed between the trio of Dr Jones, Harriet and the Sheikh, developing bonds that wouldn't have existed if not for this 50 million pounds project. It's not as if it is about those with plenty of oil money and finding themselves not knowing what to do with it, but about the spreading of far larger ideals that go into community bonding. And the romantic tale almost felt like an after thought into the second half, finding it irresistible not to have now fellow colleagues fall in love because it's a waste of good looking talent not to. There isn't any threat in the film to put things in a spin other than the battle against nature and elements that get systematically addressed, and extremists who don't get air time lest this film gets spun into a war on terror story, aside from an assassination and sabotage attempt.

It's been too long since Ewan McGregor played an Englishman, and one with impeccable manners at that, which is something his character will strike you from the onset, minding his Ps and his Qs, with the penchant for the prim and the proper. The subplot involving a slowly estranged wife was something seen coming since it stood in the way of a possible relationship with Emily Blunt's Harriet, and essentially is a weak point in the narrative that could have been done without, since it added little emotional depth to the plot. Harriet on the other hand had an equally tit-for-tat plot arc that also didn't do wonders for the story, and together they made it feel as if there was a need to throw each character into their respective romance (or lack thereof) arcs with someone else until work got in the way. It didn't help of course when Kristin Scott-Thomas was in her element being cast against type.

ultimately it's a feel good movie about hope and that leap of faith, so long as someone is funding a dream to fruition or failure. The more important central arc of fulfilling the titular dream was the most engaging, with sub plots being nothing more than a distraction that didn't offer any emotional depth, and padded the story to a feature length one. Thankfully there's comedy thrown in now and then, otherwise this would really have been like a solo fishing trip and attempt that calls for plenty of patience for something to finally bite.

There's a line in the movie that goes, "We need a good story about the Middle East that doesn't have explosions." This is it! Hilarious and touching, Ewan, Emily, and Amr are fantastic. Ewan plays this homely, heads-down British government biologist to a T. Amr is a promising newcomer. And Emily is always amazing. I saw this at the opening in Toronto and the audience loved it. No wonder it was the first one sold at the festival. A big of an underdog, a lot of other people thought it was the best they saw too. Maybe they should change the name to something catchier. That's my only suggestion. I hope this changes how people view the middle east, even in a small way.

A rich sheik has decided that he would like to bring the faith and sport of fly-fishing to Yemen. British fisheries expert, Dr. Alfred Jones (Ewan McGregor), thinks it's a joke. But the PM likes the idea of positive Anglo-Yemeni cooperation and the 2 million potential voters who fish. Dr. Jones still thinks it's a joke. The sheik transfers $50 Million over to his consultant's firm, and thus the project begins.

Dr. Jones still thinks it's a joke. And that is where the film shines. The filmmakers don't really treat it as if it's a true story and keep the humour sharp throughout. It's more closely related to a light-hearted romantic comedy rather than a sharp-edged political memoir. But again, this is where it shines, because it's so much better than a light-hearted romantic comedy. McGregor nails his serious character, allowing us to experience his whimsical sense of humour beneath his scientific demeanor. It's a character that I instantly connected with and it has never been better written or portrayed as it was here.

To me, the second best character was Sheikh Muhammed (Amr Waked). (Although at this point most people would prefer to mention the foul-mouthed press secretary by Kristin Scott Thomas). The sheikh splits his time between the desert of Yemen and the beautiful flowing streams through the mountains and glens of Scotland. He wants to bring the serenity and faith that fly-fishing brings to his people in the Middle East. Dr. Jones fishes but he is not religious. The sheikh found this a very confusing dichotomy in his character until they both realized that faith is not the same thing as religion.

"Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" is very funny and approaches political satire level. We know, and Dr, Jones knows, that fish do not survive in the desert. So obviously this is all a big joke, but as we also all know, money and power outweigh common sense. But it starts becoming clear that this might actually work after we realize that the sheikh is driven by faith – not religion, nor money. And the media comes in and creates war heroes and emotions out of nothing. As I said, the film is very funny but it doesn't skewer the politicians or media as much as we would want them to. At that point it becomes a romantic comedy.

The genre shouldn't really matter though because it's so cute and charming, and enjoyable on every level. I'm assuming the book focuses more on the political and engineering maneuvers required to bring salmon to Yemen; here we just stuck with the characters. But I loved these characters.

A British fisheries expert is presented with a offer from a Yemenese sheikh to bring the sport of fly fishing to the Sahara in this charming, likable drama from Lasse Hallstrom. It features beautiful cinematography, even for those who don't particularly care about such things, and winning performances by Ewan McGregor and Emily Blunt. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, at its heart, is not a movie about fish at all; it is about different kinds of faith and the degree to which people place their trust in them. Alfred Jones (McGregor) is an expert in all things ichthyic and works for the UK's version of the Department of the Interior. He is approached by the representative of a idealistic sheikh who loves to fish. The sheikh has it in his head that bringing the art of fly fishing for salmon to the Yemen River would be beneficial to his people (the river is dried up in places and is, obviously, in the middle of a desert). It is not a popular idea, and Jones, before and after taking a perfunctory meeting with Harriet, dismisses it as ludicrous, unsound, and downright absurd. (Dr. Jones is a bit of a straight arrow, you see.) And it would seem that would be the end of it, except that the Prime Minister's press secretary (Kristin Scott Thomas) sees this as an opportunity to foster Arab-Anglo relations at a time when, well, they're not so good. Long story short – Jones has to make the project work.

There are many obstacles to overcome. The water must be the right temperature and with the right amount of oxygen. Fish have to be found, somewhere, and imported. Negotiations must be had with local tribes who feel that bringing water to the desert is an abomination of some sort. And meanwhile, pressure mounts and mounts for Jones to pull it all off, since the sheikh is paying handsomely to the British government.

Alfred – Fred – and Harriet each have home lives that are in their own unique turmoil. Fred has been married for several years with no children, and it's clear that the love he and his wife once shared in full has dwindled considerably; she suddenly takes a job in Geneva, promising to visit him every so often. As for Harriet, the first man she has fallen for is suddenly deployed to Afghanistan. Each takes solace in their Yemen project.

What works best in this movie is the chemistry between Blunt and McGregor; the former plays an optimist ready for new challenges, and the latter is more of a stick-in-the-mud with little sense of humor. Okay, you who are reading this know that this is a plain setup, as this is not just a drama: it a romantic drama. Luckily for all of us, the movie doesn't descend into double entendres, sideward glances, awkward silences, and the like. Blunt and McGregor manage to avoid making the romance too light, too believable; we shouldn't be able to easily guess precisely how things will wind up, and we can't. Theirs is a working relationship that neither acknowledges as being anything but, and each is torn between their subconscious feelings for each other and for their respective significant others.

At one point, the sheikh asks Jones if he is a man of faith, and the expert replies that he is not. The sheikh rightly points out, however, that fishing itself relies on faith – the hope that something will occur, however improbable. A man puts a lure into the water. The outcome is not predetermined; he will most likely reel it in untouched. But he has faith that a fish will nibble at it and take the bait. The sheikh feels the same way about his fishing project. He has faith that doing so will enable the poor communities surrounding the river to thrive.

In the end, this is a quiet, elegant movie about love and hope, both of fishing and humanity. Excellent performances by the leads and able direction by Hallstrom make this a sort of soft-edged drama with romance and a bit of action.

Enjoying a film like "Salmon Fishing In The Yemen" is similar to acquiring a taste for actual fishing. Like the sport that some find invigorating while others find it dreadfully dull, this film has its draggy moments. However, there are also enlightening points to the movie that come when you least expect them.

Of course, that is not to say that you have to actually LIKE fishing, or understand it, to enjoy "Salmon Fishing In The Yemen". Fishing serves as a crucial plot point, but you don't have to be a card-carrying member of Cabella's or L.L. Bean to enjoy it.

The film has elements of romantic comedy, environmentalism, foreign relations drama, and insightfulness that makes it difficult to concretely categorize. Fortunately, all these facets combine to create a story that's far from predictable. Just like a current, there are times you don't know where the story is going.

Ewan McGregor plays Fred Jones, a fisheries expert for the British government who receives an odd request from legal representative Harriet Chetwode-Talbot (Emily Blunt). Harriet represents a wealthy sheik (Amr Waked) who resides in both Great Britain and Yemen, and has an unusual fondness for salmon fishing. He wants to take a healthy population of salmon from the British lakes, and transport them to the Yemen River to live and breed.

The reason this plot does not make for good cocktail party small talk or water cooler chatter is because it takes such a long time to describe the rationale behind such an ambitious task. For instance, can salmon, who thrive in cold water, even survive in the Middle East, where it's obviously hot? Plus, why would people from Yemen even be interested in fishing? The film answers these questions and others very well, and allows the story to breathe better as each subplot reveals itself. Nothing is rushed in this movie, which, while a few parts drag here and there, is overall a welcome departure from certain high-octane multiplex drivel that passes as entertainment.

Once you actually listen to the characters and hear their reasoning, a lot of the story makes sense. This fact is especially true for Amr Waked, who is not yet a well known actor, but whose character has a profound impact on the film.

Western audiences are not used to seeing a Middle Eastern character that is not a terrorist, let alone one who credibly connects fishing and faith better than any PBS show even could. Waked, who is Egyptian in real life but whose character is Yemeni, does so incredibly well, and is truly the breakout star of this movie. It's a shame that Oscar season just ended, because the early release of this film alone hurts his chances of receiving a Best Supporting Actor nomination, although he deserves it.

The inevitable love story in the movie is also unpredictable, if only because you're not sure whether McGregor and Blunt should be together. McGregor's Fred is married, and Blunt's Harriet has a boyfriend who is sent off to fight in the Afghanistan War. There are plot twists for both characters, but even you, the audience, remains unsure whether the two characters working together so well to bring salmon to Yemen means they should be together. It creates a necessary tension few romantic comedies dare to address.

As for their performances, McGregor seems to play a more mature leading role than in other films he's made before. His character here is more practical than idealist (as in "Moulin Rouge" (2001)), more professional than playboy (as in "Down With Love" (2003)), and knows where his morals lie (unlike "Trainspotting" (1996)). While he was good in those other films, he can only play those roles for so long.

Emily Blunt also delivered a balanced, multi-layered performance, and worked very well off McGregor. I thought there would be an explanation for why her character's last name was hyphenated, as you almost never see characters with two last names in movies. Could there have been a failed marriage in her past, perhaps? It wasn't ever explained, nor was it really crucial to the plot.

Kristin Scott Thomas also provides some unexpected comic relief as a press secretary for Parliament who chats with the British Prime Minister on Instant Messenger. Her character spearheads the campaign to transport the salmon to Yemen in order to divert public attention from the Afghanistan War. Again, a crucial subplot, but one that has to be seen, not explained second hand.

"Salmon Fishing In The Yemen" is enjoyable like some find fishing to be: there's a lot of calm to it, but when the funny parts happen, they can be as surprising and as fulfilling as catching a big fish. Also, if you actually listen to Amr Waked's character the same way some expert fisherman have pearls of wisdom, the movie's enjoyment may even come as a bigger surprise.