Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2012)

This, surprisingly, turned out to be an enjoyable, delightful movie.  And....just when I least expected it, as the title was so unusual and, truthfully, not of much interest to me.  However, a friend recommended it so, one day I decided to see it, without much expectation.  The story is about a Sheik's vision of bringing salmon fishing to the desert in Yemen and a  fisheries expert who helps this dream become reality.  Although this is not the best film ever, it is enjoyable and well worth seeing.  The actors include  Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Amr Waked.  Salmon Fishing In The Yemen is the story of a dream, the impossible vision, that shows how a journey of faith made the impossible, possible.  A romantic drama, with some comedy sprinkled in, it is a delightful find and I would recommend it to all.

This movie was enjoyable, well-acted, unique, and delightful. This unusual and apparently initially impossible plot line to introduce migrating salmon to the middle east is enriched by a very nice love story. It is more drama and romance than comedy, although several cute devices, mostly using texting onscreen attempt (with minor success) to add comedic elements. A fine, but not great film, it will please those looking for something new and out of the mainstream formula films churned out every day in the industry. I would recommend this movie.

 Books to film: do they work? In the case of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, yes. I chose to watch this film because the title alone is ridiculous. You can’t fish for salmon in the Yemen, or can you? I also liked the combination of Blunt and McGregor as leads. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a 2011 British romantic comedy and drama film directed by Lasse Hallström and starring Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas, and Amr Waked. Based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Paul Torday, and a screenplay by Simon Beaufoy, the film is about a fisheries expert who is recruited by a consultant to help realize a sheikh's vision of bringing the sport of fly fishing to the Yemen desert, initiating an upstream journey of faith to make the impossible possible. The film received generally favourable reviews from critics.

Although characters are changed from book to film, and the book itself is written though a series of emails, diaries, and correspondence, the message remains the same: suspend your disbelief and go for the dream. It’s not just about creating a salmon fishing oasis in a desert: political machinations, love, marriage, relationships, trust, faith and loyalty are all put to the test in a gentle, but unrelenting way. It’s also about the absurdities in life. A scheme that seems doomed from the start actually works because of the passion of the people involved. Things go wrong, disasters strike, but an underlying determination keeps the wheels turning.

The author is a British businessman and dedicated angler who has found a quite marvellous way of combining his passion with his opinions on life and politics. It’s a gentle reminder of what life can be like, how dreams can be achieved, and the impossible made possible. I shall now get the book and enjoy the story all over again! 

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, directed by Lasse Hallström, is surprisingly a romantic comedy. Despite the often nauseating nature of romcoms, a mainstream film with fishing as its central theme is rare and definitely worth a watch. That was my excuse for spending a couple of hours watching the movie with my wife over Easter. The last popular mainstream movie with a fishing theme that comes to mind is A River Runs Through It, featuring Brad Pitt in one of his early roles, based on the life of legendary American fishing writer Norman Maclean.

The plot of Salmon Fishing revolves around a sheik's ambitious dream of introducing salmon to his Middle Eastern homeland of Yemen. The sheik, portrayed by Amr Waked, is an avid fly fisherman with seemingly unlimited resources and a vision for bringing something extraordinary to his country. When the British government learns of the sheik's plan, they see it as an opportunity to enhance UK/Yemeni relations and create a much-needed positive news story. The British Prime Minister's straightforward press secretary, played by the brilliant Kristin Scott Thomas, seizes the opportunity. Enter the skeptical Fisheries scientist Dr. Alfred Jones (played by Ewan McGregor). Jones initially views the scheme as a joke and a waste of his time. Even the sheik's intermediary, Harriet Chetwode-Talbot (portrayed by the gorgeous Emily Blunt), struggles to convince Jones of the feasibility of the ambitious plan, which relies not only on money but also largely on faith to succeed. Once Jones acknowledges that the dream is theoretically possible, things begin to fall into place.

The movie then takes a predictable turn towards romance (or lack thereof) as Jones faces troubles on the home front, and Harriet's soldier boyfriend is deployed to Afghanistan. Unfortunately for the sheik, his grand plan encounters obstacles when sourcing salmon for stocking proves to be extremely challenging, and his Yemeni countrymen do not share his vision. Without revealing too much...