The Grand Seduction
Directed by: Don McKellar
Written by: Michael Dowse, Ken Scott
Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Gordon Pinsent, Taylor Kitsch, Mark Critch, Matt Watts, Pete Soucy, Margaret Killingbeck, Mary Walsh, Sarah Tilly, Cathy Jones, Liane Balaban
Comedy - 113 min Reviewed by Charlie Juhl on 13 Jun 2014
Written by: Michael Dowse, Ken Scott
Starring: Brendan Gleeson, Gordon Pinsent, Taylor Kitsch, Mark Critch, Matt Watts, Pete Soucy, Margaret Killingbeck, Mary Walsh, Sarah Tilly, Cathy Jones, Liane Balaban
Comedy - 113 min Reviewed by Charlie Juhl on 13 Jun 2014
Murray French (Brendan Gleeson) suffers from that all too familiar affliction I call the Golden Age Syndrome. Everything that happened back when you were a child was better. Food tasted better, folks were nicer, everything was priced correctly, the air was fresher, etc… In the case of Murray’s small, only accessible by boat, secluded harbor village in middle of nowhere Newfoundland, those characteristics of how things used to be may be true. The fishermen were so good they successfully depleted the local fish supply. Now, all of their grown-up sons are on welfare and bitter.
To revive their flagging fortunes, they must lure a new factory to town, but this requires certain infrastructure to already be in place. They need a certain amount of residents they do not have, some bribe money to grease the wheels they do not have, and a town doctor which they do not have. No medical professional in his right mind would set up shop in this run down hamlet. Ah, but Murray French is nothing if not creative with a large helping of manipulation.
To revive their flagging fortunes, they must lure a new factory to town, but this requires certain infrastructure to already be in place. They need a certain amount of residents they do not have, some bribe money to grease the wheels they do not have, and a town doctor which they do not have. No medical professional in his right mind would set up shop in this run down hamlet. Ah, but Murray French is nothing if not creative with a large helping of manipulation.
Ripping off the premise of 1991’s Doc Hollywood, a city slicker plastic surgeon lands in the town for a one month gig as the local doctor. Dr. Lewis (Taylor Kitsch, 2013’s Lone Survivor) lives well enhancing cheekbones and breasts for a living and is not used to curing exotic foot fungus and a myriad of other ailments common to the folk of the town time forgot. Dr. Lewis’s arrival is Murray’s big chance though. If he can somehow convince him to stay, the town gets the factory.
Convince is a positive spin on Murray’s plans though. The town folk tap his phone to study his likes and dislikes, pretend to be interested in and play cricket even though the sport is as foreign to them as the planet Mars, and even try to bamboozle him into thinking the town’s one single, good looking female is in love with him. Some of the tricks are pretty low but since they are perpetrated by salt of the Earth, blue collar do-gooders, the script ignores the multiple laws they break trying to keep Dr. Lewis around.
Convince is a positive spin on Murray’s plans though. The town folk tap his phone to study his likes and dislikes, pretend to be interested in and play cricket even though the sport is as foreign to them as the planet Mars, and even try to bamboozle him into thinking the town’s one single, good looking female is in love with him. Some of the tricks are pretty low but since they are perpetrated by salt of the Earth, blue collar do-gooders, the script ignores the multiple laws they break trying to keep Dr. Lewis around.
The story is not strong enough for you to run right out and see The Grand Seduction; it is mostly derivative and filled with stock material. The one reason you may want to check it out though is Brendan Gleeson (2014’s Edge of Tomorrow). This Irishman playing Canadian is the film’s rock. He is in just about every scene and easily shoulders the movie’s entire weight. His portrayal of Murray as a man who remembers how good it used to be and wants to see his town thrive once more is believable. His methods and bag of tricks are ludicrous, but you will find yourself rooting for him.
Taylor Kitsch is an actor your wife loves. All wives love him while the gentlemen barely notice him. In the TV series Friday Night Lights, us guys watched the football and followed the coach’s ups and down. The ladies watched Taylor Kitsch. His Dr. Lewis is a bit too easily manipulated and his transformation toward the end produces far more incredulity than the story can handle. Gordon Pinsent as the village’s crustiest old codger, Simon, is fun to watch and provides the majority of the light-hearted comedic tone The Grand Seduction aims for.
Taylor Kitsch is an actor your wife loves. All wives love him while the gentlemen barely notice him. In the TV series Friday Night Lights, us guys watched the football and followed the coach’s ups and down. The ladies watched Taylor Kitsch. His Dr. Lewis is a bit too easily manipulated and his transformation toward the end produces far more incredulity than the story can handle. Gordon Pinsent as the village’s crustiest old codger, Simon, is fun to watch and provides the majority of the light-hearted comedic tone The Grand Seduction aims for.
Director Don McKellar, whose resume includes far more acting credits than directing, creates a real enough crumbling village. Visually, we notice globalization ensured technology and progress skipped right over this secluded spot. Unfortunately, there is nothing original here. The film is even based right off of a 2003 film, Seducing Dr. Lewis, with the same writer, Ken Scott. Mr. Scott is also responsible for 2013’s Delivery Man, a direct remake/rip-off of his earlier Starbuck. It appears once he creates an amusing film first in French, he must remake it into a less pleasing English version.
The Grand Seduction won’t challenge you or show you anything you haven’t seen before, but it will make you smile at times. You will most likely remember Brendan Gleeson’s performance far more vividly than any part of the story. If you’re looking for a complacent, safe escape from the summer heat, look no further than The Grand Seduction.
The Grand Seduction won’t challenge you or show you anything you haven’t seen before, but it will make you smile at times. You will most likely remember Brendan Gleeson’s performance far more vividly than any part of the story. If you’re looking for a complacent, safe escape from the summer heat, look no further than The Grand Seduction.
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