Salmon Fishing within the Yemen

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen: Hooked
Watching Salmon Fishing in the Yemen for the fist time, one might think of it as touching, funny, slightly inane, and somewhat unexpected. I should add delightful as well. There are some thoughtful and undeveloped undercurrents of some serious topics here, but this is a movie to just sit back and enjoy.The film was adapted for film by Lasse Hallström, from British writer and author Paul Torday’s 2006 debut novel Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, which won the 2007 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for comic writing.We have a plan dreamed up by a visionary sheik played by Amr Waked, and the sheik has the financial resources to turn a Middle Eastern desert into a recreational utopia for sport fishermen. Our sheik seems to be a New Age mystic of sorts, who is given to letting loose with a bit of inspirational gibberish at times… and for this viewer, this just adds to the story. Add in Kristin Scott Thomas’s depiction of Patricia Maxwell, the British prime minister’s press secretary, and she snaps her dialogue with a real tone of severe icy disdain.The sheik is an avid fly fisherman who has an estate in Scotland, and he visualizes a prodigious water management project that involves the construction of a salmon run in which the salmon can swim upstream to spawn. He declares that this will bring his preferred leisure activity closer to home and will also help his people. The sheik’s plan is proposed to the British government by his assistant, Harriet (Emily Blunt), and Patricia Maxwell sees this as a perfect opportunity to distract the public from the conflicts in the Middle Eastern conflicts, resulting in political points for her boss.Dr. Alfred `Fred’ Jones (played by Ewan McGregor) is a British fisheries expert is approached to assess the feasibility of the idea, which would involve importing thousands of North Atlantic salmon from Britain to Yemen. He believes this plan to be ridiculous and impossible to carry out, and he dismisses the idea. But Patricia has done her research and has found that two million British voters are fishing enthusiasts, so she pressures Fred’s boss to force his participation in this scheme.However there’s an uproar that follows when British fishermen learn that their salmon stock will be depleted. The only solution to this dilemma is to use farmed salmon, which have absolutely no river experience. Then comes the big question as to whether farmed salmon will follow their wild brethren’s instincts and head upstream.Fred is an unhappily married bureaucrat whose cold wife of two decades leaves him for months at a time to conduct her business in other places. He develops an undeclared romantic attraction to Harriet, but her boyfriend Robert (Tom Mison) is fighting overseas. She receives news that Robert is missing in action, and she falls apart.There’s a perfunctory subplot where the sheik becomes the target of an assassination plot by Islamic extremists, but the biggest moment of suspense has nothing to do with terrorism: it comes when the farmed salmon are released into the waters of their new home. Will the farmed salmon follow their wild comrades’ instincts and head upstream, or will they just swim around in complete confusion? And will Fred and Harriet and Fred get together? You’ll have to see the film for those answers.If anyone wonders about the impact of this movie, a May 2012 article in The Telegraph (UK) noted that the Yemen Tourism Promotion Board had been “inundated” with requests about the country following the film’s release, and that salmon fishing isn’t actually that popular in the Western Asian country, though there are sea fishing opportunities there. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen can be quirky in places, but if you liked The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel or Love Actually, then you’ll probably enjoy this film. For this viewer, it was better to just sit back and enjoy it, and as a result, I’m hooked.10/28/2012

WELL-INTENTIONAL BUT LACKING STORY OF INSPIRATION
SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN takes a very unlikely premise and makes it somewhat believable. The movie, based on Paul Torday’s acclaimed book of the same title, takes us on a different and somewhat fantasical journey into another side of the Middle East and the mysterious and exotic country Yemen.Egyptian actor Amr Waked stars as an incredibly wealthy sheik who has the dream of bringing salmon visiting to Yemen. Salmon need water and Yemen is not known for its abundance of water nor is it known for cooler temperatures that seem to be the preference of fish. The sheik is a kind-hearted, well-educated and enlighted man who seems to think spending $50 million on this project will bring joy and prosperity to his poor nation.It’s up to Alfred Jones (Ewan McGregor), a fisheries expert, to make it work along with the help of the sheik’s consultant Harriet (Emily Blunt). The fantasy project comes together after Britain’s Prime Minister’s press secretary Bridget decides there needs to be a postive story coming out of the Middle East. Why not Salmon fishing in the Yemen. Kristin Scott Thomas is a chain-shoking, hyper-active Bridget who does not know the meaning of “It can’t be done.”The sheik has lofty dreams while Jones is practical. When Harriet’s sincere dedication is added to the mix, anything seems possible. There is great chemistry among this cast of talented British and Egyptian actors. They almost get us to believe in the project and its future for Yemen. Unfortunately, the story gets muddled in the waters. Alfred’s marriage is falling apart. Harriet’s soldier boyfriend who she has just met has disappeared in Afghanistan. Bridget has to deal with angry British fisherman anxious to protect their salmon from being shipped to Yemen. Above all, the sheik’s life is in constant dangers from elements within his country who think his project will shame and ruin Yemen.If you’ve gotten this far, you can probably guess the story and the familiar plot. A fun idea becomes another run of the mill story about boy meets girl under difficult circumstances and a dream brings them together.SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN does have its charm along with beautiful scenery in Scotland and Morocco (who fills in for Yemen–probably not the safest place to film a movie at this time in history). Yemen is a lovely and exotic country and it is sad Morocco had to be the double. It’s not a fulfilling movie but pleasant enough with a dream cast of great actors.

Très beau

Wer wie ich den gleichnamigen Bestseller von Paul Torday nicht kennt, für den mag der Titel dieses Films genauso bescheuert klingen, wie für Dr. Alfred Jones, eine internationale Größe in Sachen Lachs- und Forellenzucht, die Idee eine Lachszucht in Jemen zu planen. Das ist die Ausgangsidee für die äußerst charmante und sehr warmherzig gespielte Dramödie, die durch wunderbare Schauspieler wie Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas und Amr Waked sowie durch eine einfühlsame Regie von Lasse Hallström begeistern kann.Speziell in der ersten Hälfte, als der nur äußerst widerwillige und widerspenstige Dr. Jones sich mehr gezwungener Maßen am Projekt beteiligt, denn aus Überzeugung, ist es eine wahre Freude dem Miesepeter zuzusehen. Dessen anfänglichen Hohn und Spott kontert die sympathische Harriet Chetwode-Talbot (Emily Blunt) mit einer entwaffnenden Herzlichkeit und Lebensfreude, was wie der Gegenentwurf zum bisherigen Leben von Dr. Jones wirkt. Natürlich ist das Ende einer Romance Komödie vorhersehbar, doch bis dahin müssen die beiden noch einige Schwierigkeiten aus den Weg räumen, nicht nur was die Erfüllung des Projektes erfordert. Hier kommt eine zweite Ebene zur Romance Kommödie dazu, die Politsatire. Da die britische Regierung dringend eine positive Geschichte für den Nahen Osten benötigt, unterstützt diese, angeführt von der herrlich überdreht gespielten Kristin Scott Thomas als dominanter Pressesprecherin, das Projekt. Allein schon die herrlichen Dialoge von Ihr mit den Regierungsmitgliedern sind eine Wucht. Doch es gibt auch einige lokale Projektgegner, die nicht zu unterschätzen sind…Wie schon eingangs erwähnt, gefällt mir persönlich die erste Hälfte etwas besser, da der Schluß vielleicht etwas überladen ist. Dennoch ist “Lachsfischen in Jemen” ein jederzeit sehenswerter und unterhaltsamer Film, den man sich gerne mit seinem Partner/ seiner Partnerin anschauen mag. Die gute Chemie, die zwischen den beiden Hauptdarstellern während der Dreharbeiten herrschte, merkt man dem Film in seinen romantischen Momenten an. Amr Waked spielt den jemenitischen Scheich so warmherzig und offen, daß es eine wahre Freude ist, dem Scheich bei seinen Ausführungen zuzuhören.Technisch gesehen gibt es an der DVD nichts auszusetzen. Das Bild im 16:9 Format ist herrlich klar ebenso der Ton, der im Deutschen in DTS DD 5.1 gut rüberkommt. Alternativ ist auch die englische Sprachfassung in DD 5.1 vorhanden. Dazu gibt es noch deutsche Untertitel. Zusätzlich kann die DVD noch mit Extras punkten wie einem Making of (“Wunder geschehen: Der Dreh vom Lachsfischen in Jemen), einem Interview mit dem Autor (der Fischer im Nahen Osten: Romanautor Paul Torday), sowie dem dt. und Original-Kinotrailer und einem Wendecover. Aufgrund dieses guten Gesamtpakets vergebe ich gerne fünf Lachse.