The Shipping News

The Shipping News is a subdued drama about the loser Quoyle, whose life takes a new turn when he moves to the small community in Newfoundland where his family comes from. Quoyle has not had an easy time of it, with a brutal father and a tart of a wife, who is killed in a road accident together with a lover. When Quoyle's aunt Agnis turns up and suggests that Quoyle and his daughter Bunny come with her to Newfoundland, there is not much to think about.

Quoyle, Agnis and Bunny move into the family's old, uninhabited and badly dilapidated house, which is lashed to the rocky ground with steel cables so that the strong wind will not take it. Quoyle gets a job on the local rag writing local news, hence the film's title, and to his own surprise he is not at all a bad journalist. At the same time he falls in love with the teacher Wavey Prowse, widow of a seafaring man, but she too has scars on her soul.

The Shipping News has a very Scandinavian tone. That may be due to the scenery with its harsh and magnificent nature, but also to the story's calm pace. There are no grand gestures, yet you are fascinated by the story of a man who finds his self-esteem and true love at the back of beyond.