Review of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2012) by Walter M — 31 Aug 2013

Needing a happy human interest story to get everybody's mind off the latest war atrocity in the Middle East, Patricia Maxwell(Kristin Scott Thomas) rejects the story of girl band tour for obvious reasons. Instead, she goes with a project wherein Sheikh Muhammad(Amr Waked) wants to introduce salmon fishing into his home country of Yemen which Dr. Alfred Jones(Ewan McGregor) has already rejected for being too insane for words. However, after the gentle persuasion of Harriet Chetwode-Talbot(Emily Blunt) and less gentle persuasion of his boss Bernard Sugden(Conleth Hill) who threatens to fire him if he does not go along, or even worse, double his salary if he does, Dr. Jones does in fact change his mind, especially after his wife Mary(Rachael Stirling) reminds him about the mortgage payments.

One way to approach a story like "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" might be to highlight the absurdities, like Monty Python would have, which I could definitely see the humor in. However, this movie takes a completely different angle, which is neat in its own weird way, by wondering if anything is possible, with a little faith, like say peace in the Middle East? And that's not to mention the movie going after certain stereotypes, but only so far. For example, are the British still so very British in this day and age?(And is Al-Qaeda offended that they are compared to anglers?) In any case, the cinematography is beautiful and Kristin Scott Thomas seems to be enjoying herself for once. Now, if only the movie had a proper ending.