Deeply

I think the movie was really good. It was a good romance movie. It had a sad ending but I think that makes a better ending than a fariy tale ending. It may not have been one of Kirsten Dunst"s is best movie, but not every movie can be the best. I liked the movie whether or not is was her best movie. I think if you like a little romance it would be a good movie for you.

Decent enough film, but the accents distracted me too, Kirsten Dunst's most of all (yeah, it did sound kind of southern), though she did well in her physical mannerisms, which made up for it to some degree. Funny, not one of the Nova Scotian accents sounded right to me. I'm originally from there, though a mainlander. Made me wonder if I forgot how a Cape Breton accident sounds, or if they were tuning into some very local dialect I've never heard before (Pugwash maybe?). Half these people sounded Irish and the others I don't know what. Then I doubted myself noticing in the credits the job of Nova Scotia casting. But now that I look in the listing here it seems Nova Scotia casting involves hiring a bunch of people from Ontario. Hrmmph.

Fairly good drama dealing with 2 girls and how they handle their first big trauma in life. I liked the way the 2 stories ran side by side complimenting each other through a series of flashbacks even though one got more play then the other. Worth seeing.

Fiona (Alberta Watson) returns home to isolated Ironbound Island after her mother left her the family home. She brought her depressed daughter Claire (Julia Brendler) who suffered a devastating loss. They are greeted by Fiona's uncle Peat. Claire is pushed to deliver a package to bitter writer Celia (Lynn Redgrave). Celia tells Claire a story about the island's past when fish was plenty. Silly (Kirsten Dunst) was born on the fish cutting table. Her mother Rose was a mainlander and everybody is keeping the island lore from her. They suspect Silly to be the special one. On her death bed, Rose makes Silly promise her not to go into the water. Then one day, the fish disappears.

It's a story within a story. The modern story has Lynn Redgrave anchoring it. She brings her professionalism and powerful acting. The story within the story has Kirsten Dunst doing some good work. The story has a poetic sadness. The production is a little too indie. It doesn't have the magic that the story requires. Writer/director Sheri Elwood doesn't have the compelling visual style and the movie does struggle with pacing. It's a fair movie about sadness and loss.

I just saw this movie as part of the Atlantic Film Festival and it truely blew me away. The wonderful story cast a spell on me that I could not evade even after the movie. This beautifully filmed movie makes me wish that Hollywood would really go on strike next year. Maybe then movies like this would find their way to more screens.