The Shipping News | Rotten Tomatoes

The Shipping News

R

Released Jan 11, 2002

1 hr. 51 min.

Drama

List

54%

131 Reviews

Tomatometer

61%

10,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Traces one man's extraordinary journey toward self -discovery when he returns to his ancestral home on the coast of Newfoundland. After the death of his estranged wife, Quoyle's fortunes begin to change when his long-lost aunt convinces him and his daughter to head north. Now, in a place where life is as rough as the weather and secrets are as vast as the ocean, Quoyle lands a job as a reporter for the local paper. In the course of his new career he uncovers some dark family secrets.

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Critics Consensus

Though solidly made and acted, The Shipping News is rather heavy-handed and dull, especially given the nature of its protagonist.

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Richard R

This film is magnificent. One of the greatest movies ever made. Those who fail to appreciate the genius of it simply do not understand humanity.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/18/24

Full Review

X O

I remember the book in the 90s. 35 years later I am watching the film. It can ruin it for you ... Spacey can't play dumb even if he tried. Blame it on Se7en, The Usual Suspects, and American Beauty, but he's not even even floundering or that gawky like he is playing someone who is dimwitted. Not the right speech syntax. Also, who fixes ropes WITHOUT GLOVES IN WINTER!? Also walking into an abandoned house without a chill? And the musical score is vapid. What the film grossly lacks is how Annie Proulx writes. Short sentences. Full stops. So hard to pull off, and she does. The film can't show this. She is giving the SOUND of living in bitterly cold weather. So impressive. Read the book. Forget the film.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

06/11/23

Full Review

Obviously I am wired differently than most people, because I find it a very good movie. First of all the music is gorgeous and so well integrated in the film that it is almost part of the images. Casting is spot on. Acting could not have been better. Scenario is refreshingly out of the ordinary. Cinematography is unsurpassed.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/03/23

Full Review

dave s

While it tends to take some minor liberties with Annie Proulx' novel, Lasse Hallstrom's The Shipping News is certainly faithful in spirit to the source material. With his world falling apart in upstate New York, Quayle (Kevin Spacey) escapes to a small fishing village in Newfoundland, where he is able to touch base with his fragile roots and learn the meanings of friendship and family. The whole thing feels insanely predictable throughout as it becomes evident early on that Quayle, a simpering doormat from the start, will find his true calling (and maybe even love) in the harsh new environment. Despite this, it's got a fantastic cast (Julianne Moore, Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett and more), stunning cinematography that captures the rugged landscape, and a subtle but effective score.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

colin m

This was okay. A bit bland.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Screenwriter Robert Nelson Jacobs and director Lasse Hallstrom have done a great job of adapting Prulx's story, with cinematic equivalents for some of the book's best prose. Spacey of course is one of the most brilliant actors ever to appear in a movie, providing Qyoyle with emotional eloquence even when he does not speak. Every performance is jewel-like, including Dench, Blanchett, Julianne Moore who befriends Quoyle, Scott Glenn, and the triplets playing the part of Bunny. The novel presented a real challenge to the filmmakers. Its dense descriptions of crafts and weather do not translate to the screen. The real action goes on inside the undemonstrative Quoyle and only an actor of extraordinary range and power could communicate that to a movie audience. The movie is good, but a lot gets lost in translation.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/08/23

Full Review

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Lasse Hallström

Director

Kevin Spacey

Quoyle

Julianne Moore

Wavey Prowse

Judi Dench

Agnis Hamm

Cate Blanchett

Betal Bear

Pete Postlethwaite

Tert. X. Card

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Not really meant for kids and teens.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 29, 2010

Full Review

Empire Magazine

Rated: 3/5

Dec 30, 2006

Full Review

Andrew Sarris

Observer

I am baffled by all the negativity surrounding it, and I am prepared to designate it as the most underrated film of 2001.

Mar 13, 2002

Full Review

Felicia Feaster

Creative Loafing

But despite sensitivity to the myriad ways personal history shapes us, the film often feels as emotionally constrained and rigid as the Quoyle house lashed to the hill.

Jan 29, 2020

Full Review

John Powers

L.A. Weekly

Spacey is terrific at playing monsters... As Quoyle stumbles through the Newfoundland scenery with a look of dumb, wounded decency that's as annoying as it is unpersuasive, his eyes let us know that he's smarter than the guy he's playing.

May 17, 2018

Full Review

Brent Simon

Shared Darkness

You can envision the attractively packaged DVD or Blu-ray sell-through collection now: 'Lasse Hallstrom's Baldly Oscar-Baiting Literary Adaptations. Buy it today!'

Rated: D

May 15, 2012

Full Review

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Synopsis

Traces one man's extraordinary journey toward self -discovery when he returns to his ancestral home on the coast of Newfoundland. After the death of his estranged wife, Quoyle's fortunes begin to change when his long-lost aunt convinces him and his daughter to head north. Now, in a place where life is as rough as the weather and secrets are as vast as the ocean, Quoyle lands a job as a reporter for the local paper. In the course of his new career he uncovers some dark family secrets.

Director: Lasse Hallström
Executive Producer: Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein, Meryl Poster
Screenwriter: Robert Nelson Jacobs, E. Annie Proulx
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: Miramax Films
Rating: R (Sexuality|Disturbing Images|Some Language)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 11, 2002, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 8, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $11.4M
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, SDDS, Dolby A, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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