Rent Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2011)

Pleasantly surprised - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen review by MP

It's such a nice film! My wife wanted to see it and to be honest I didn't. However withing about 1 minute in was hooked.

Ewan McGregor is wry food indeed and it's the sort of role Emily Blunt excels in.

Enjoyable romantic film.

A beautiful film with pitch perfect Ewan McGregor/Emily Blunt chemisty - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen review by TB

Being a massive Ewan McGregor fan, this was one of his films which I hadn’t seen but wanted to. The inclusion of Emily Blunt as well as Amr Waked (who had a brief but very effective and powerful role in Syriana) added to this.

Within 5 minutes of starting, this film had me completely engrossed in it. Ewan’s performance, which openly references at one point his character’s Asperger’s/autism, is perfect and he manages to make you at all times feel the emotions his character does. How you slowly see him go from being an utter cynic with limited social skills to someone who openly cheers as his project comes to fruition is a joy to witness.

But special mention must go out to Emily Blunt, whose chemistry with Ewan is as good as Nicole Kidman’s was in Moulin Rouge. Blunt is a fine actress and her positivity at all times against Ewan’s character’s negativity and how she slowly wins him round is worth the price of admission on its own. Their chemistry is one that hopefully will be seen again soon on screen.

Much has been made of Kristen Scott Thomas and her against type role, which again was enjoyable, although she was mainly regulated to shouting down a phone for much of it. 

A big mention must go out to Dario Marianelli, whose soundtrack, much like for The Brave One, fits like a glove. Cinematography and direction are also flawless. 

The only part which did rankle slightly was the inclusion of a plot device in Blunt’s character arc in the last third which, after the perfectly performed build up, didn’t sit well. The main reason for this was it took the focus away from the partnership of Ewan/Emily, which the whole film perfectly sat round.

But this is a minor complaint about a film which, as the credits rolled, left me with a big smile on my face as well as a sadness that the story had come to an end. Very gentle but highly recommended viewing for pretty much all ages. 

Good but not great - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen review by Swambi

I enjoyed this film and would certainly recommend a viewing, although it wouldn't feature on my list of all time greats.

It is set against the background of present day UK government and Middle East instability, and explores a plot along lines reminiscent of Forrest Gump, with a rather 'gormless' hero, and a similar approach to combining extraordinary events with such realistic filming that strange events become credible, ranging from the Civil Service, investment firms, cultured Arabs owning Scottish castles and lochs and massive investment in salmon fishing facilities in the Yemen. This aspect also develops a slightly subtle humour, a few thoughts on the nature of faith and fishing and some exceptional shots of fish that I really enjoyed (although not a fisherman).

Overall though, the film was let down on the 'romantic' and relationships aspect, with a lack of clarity leaving one wondering about the morality or indeed reason for Fred Jones deserting Mary. The relationships generally lacked any chemistry, and could largely be predicted from the outset.

There are a couple of action scenes in the film and the second one (a flash flood incident) seemed incredible at some points.