Diverted

Having lived virtually my entire life in the big city of Toronto, I then had the chance to live for three years in the mid 90's in a small outport in Central Newfoundland, about a 2 hour drive west of Gander. Everything I had heard about Newfoundlanders I found to be true. They were welcoming, hospitable, friendly, funny - a truly unique and wonderful culture. That Gander was able to rise to the challenge of feeding and housing almost 7,000 stranded airline passengers whose flights had been diverted to the city after the closure of US airspace on that terrible day of September 11, 2001 was no surprise to me. This movie attempts to tell that story by offering a fictionalized account focusing largely on the experiences of the people of a particular flight who found themselves in Gander on that day.

For the most part, I enjoyed the movie. It had a real "Newfoundland feel" to it, some spectacular scenery shots and tried valiantly (and successfully to a large extent) to portray both the bewilderment and sometimes anger of the passengers who found themselves trapped in this insanity, as well as the struggle of the city and its officials to come to terms with the role they had been given. The performances weren't great, but they were decent enough, and it was nice to see a Canadian- made movie that was unapologetically Canadian. The movie did have two major flaws, though. First was the decision to introduce two potential romances to the mix (one between passengers, and one between a passenger and a resident.) Frankly, that just didn't fit. I can't think of a better way to put it. The other mistake was to focus so heavily on the passengers, when the real story was the absolute logistical miracle as this small city came together to meet a herculean challenge. There was little sense of what the city was up against, and of how incredible their efforts were. The people of Gander came across here as nice, but not valiant. That was a real weakness.

If you're truly interested in what happened on and after 9/11 in Gander, you really should read the book "The Day The World Came To Town." Author Jim DeFede did a brilliant job of weaving the passengers' stories into those of the folks of Gander, and gave a real feel for the effort that went into pulling this off. As to the movie? As entertainment it was OK, but not great. I was never tempted to change the channel. As to history? It could have been a lot better. The people of Gander deserved a better tribute. Still, I'd give it a 6/10

So what took so long? Right after 9/11, I said the story of Canada accepting hundreds of diverted flights would make a great movie. Finally after eight years, it's happened. This is well done, not "great", but well done. A couple of plausible love stories are effectively worked in. The film seems true to the facts and it captures the wonderful realities of Newfoundland right down to some great "down east" music, the awesome scenery, the legendary hospitality of "Newfies" and even the touristy rite of "kissin' the cod." I hope this film gets some offshore exposure. It was a tragic time but also one in which Canada played a proud role.

6.4 stars.

Maybe it wasn't totally no budget, there are some great scenes that seemed polished. In fact, the whole film looks well done and not cheaply made, but it feels cheap and I feel cheap for watching it. There seems to be about 7 main characters. I'll spitball it and say the hotel concierge was one of them along with a man and a woman of middle age who are seated next to each other on the plane. Then there is the air traffic controller who is a recognizable actor (X-Men, Rookie Blue, and a plethora of movies and shows), and a young woman with semi-dark skin, and maybe they are attempting to portray her as an Arab, it's uncertain, but she's English. And then there's the actual Arab who is a New Yorker and they are looking strangely at him and treating him with disdain because he's Muslim. And finally there's an arrogant businessman who has to get back to New York immediately, and thinks the whole world owes him. So anyways, those are the main characters.

The film was good for the first hour, then we are dealing with some cut rate relationships forming between two couples and the snooty businessman is all up in everyone's face because he feels like his life is more important than anyone else. The hotel worker is probably the only person with any redeeming qualities. I liked her portrayal of an Irish woman who lives in NewFoundland and works in a hotel that is inundated by thousands of passengers who have no place to go now that no planes are allowed to fly into the USA due to the twin towers being attacked. Otherwise the film was a disappointment after about 50 minutes.

I loved this movie. Perhaps because I'm a proud Newfoundlander from that part of the island, perhaps because I heard first-hand what was happening as it was happening, or simply because it was a great tale; probably a mixture of all.

Yes, the budget was typically Canadian - no doubt. And, it was a little annoying to hear some of the leading actors sport fake Irish accents and to watch the movie pass off parts of St. John's as Gander. However, I couldn't have been prouder to see the town rally to support the emergency. It's like they'd done it every day of their lives.

I was moved to tears several times, especially in the beginning. I think they did a great job trying to capture the various tales people had to go through at that time - the personal stories.

In general, it was moving to see the town spotlighted in such a positive way, and to see the typical Newfoundland and Labrador kindness displayed on screen.

A well done and well deserved film, celebrating our fine Newfoundlanders.

David Suchet portrays the role of Samuel Stern with such conviction that you have no choice but to go through his emotional journey with him. Joanne Whalley played her role with a lot passion and understanding. Lisa Repo-Martell gave one of the most memorable performances during the film with lots of control and presence. One of the most interesting subplots was the story of Jamal Hassani, played by Anousha Alamian and his struggle as a minority, which felt real and honest and gave the film such humanity, that it was thrilling to watch.

Well worth watching again and again.