Sony Pictures Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Last updated date: August 15, 2019

DWYM Score

7.1

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We looked at the top Rom Com Movies and dug through the reviews from some of the most popular review sites. Through this analysis, we've determined the best Rom Com Movie you should buy.

Overall Take

In our analysis of 123 expert reviews, the Sony Pictures Sony Pictures Salmon Fishing in the Yemen placed 4th when we looked at the top 10 products in the category. For the full ranking, see below.

Editor's Note August 15, 2019:
Checkout The Best Rom-Com Movie for a detailed review of all the top rom com movies.

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Expert Summarized Score

6.3

15 expert reviews

User Summarized Score

8.6

2,629 user reviews

Our Favorite Video Reviews

What experts liked

This perhaps sounds like a hilarious movie. So it could be, in the hands of the masters of classic British comedy.

- Roger Ebert

March 7, 2012 | Full review

As awkward as McGregor’s geeky hero and almost as confused as the titular plan, Salmon Fishing is still very likable if you’re prepared to take the bait.

- Empire

| Full review

The first act is easily the film's most enjoyable, with full-wattage performances from three leads

- The Hollywood Reporter

September 12, 2011 | Full review

For an unassuming romantic dramedy, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen includes a lot of spiritual content.

- Plugged In

| Full review

From a purely aesthetic and entertainment perspective, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is one of the better produced films released this year. It is well rounded in the quality of the acting, script and direction – allowing moviegoers to experience a full range of emotions, from hilarity to distress.

- CBN

| Full review

This film is about faith and patience and the beauty of these qualities experienced in the splendor of Scotland and Morocco that represents the Yemen.

- Huff Post

May 9, 2012 | Full review

The film is careful to make it seem as if he is a wide-eyed visionary rather than, say, a billionaire who is converting the desert into his own private theme park.

- Christian Science Monitor

| Full review

Kristin Scott Thomas balances the scales with a brilliantly funny and strangely endearing turn as the PM's spin doctor.

- Digital Spy

August 15, 2019 | Full review

I found myself laughing throughout; it’s not a comedy, really, but there’s plenty of wry humor mixed in with the moving human drama.

- Fernby Films

February 6, 2013 | Full review

Enjoyable even with its flaws, of which there are many, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen has enough of a sweet romance to earn a mild recommendation.

- Deep Focus Review

| Full review

What really makes SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN works more than anything else are the performances by Blunt and McGregor. Both are exceedingly likable in the right parts and both are playing to their strengths here.

- Jo Blo

March 8, 2012 | Full review

The acting in the film is all-around stellar. It’s a cast of stars who excel at both comedy as well as drama, and Amr Waked is a revelation.

- The Epoch Times

October 1, 2015 | Full review

This movie ended up being nothing I expected. I'll say this right now, I loved it. I felt transported to another time and place.

- It's A Lovely Life

| Full review

In fact, I think Dr Jones has more warmth with his estranged wife than with his newfound love interest. There's enough comedy that has the audience laughing out loud, but the stilted and forced love story really ruins it for me.

- Camemberu

March 19, 2012 | Full review

What experts didn't like

The sheikh's response to the death attempts is disappointment: "They thought it was all about the fish!"

- Roger Ebert

March 7, 2012 | Full review

The weakest part of this film is the ferocious government PR chief, played by Kristin Scott Thomas, with much lip-pursing and eye-rolling, but nothing funny or believable in the script for her to say.

- The Guardian

| Full review

But Salmon Fishing In The Yemen is bit more complicated than that. Mixing political satire with broad humour, unlikely romance and even an assassination plot, it casts its net wide and gets a mixed, if lively, haul.

- Empire

| Full review

The plot offers an unsatisfactory half-measure: The soldier goes missing in action, leaving Harriet a worried wreck unsuitable for wooing.

- The Hollywood Reporter

September 12, 2011 | Full review

The problem is that the film also invites us to root for Fred and Harriet to get together. That outcome is telegraphed from the beginning, of course, cribbed from the countless "odd couple" romances Hollywood has produced for decades.

- Plugged In

| Full review

Despite its strengths, this film’s family-friendly weaknesses include pre-marital relations, emotional adultery and offensive language – all contributing to its PG-13 rating.

- CBN

| Full review

McGregor and Blunt work well together, which only compounds the disappointment.

- Christian Science Monitor

| Full review

All of these visual elements and subplots come together, I suppose, but in a clumsy way that’s never completely satisfying.

- Deep Focus Review

| Full review

Furthermore, there’s the example of the dilemma of stocking the salmon run with farmed fish, which most likely lack their original wild instinct to head upstream to spawn.

- The Epoch Times

October 1, 2015 | Full review

I also wish the movie had a different ending, which would give it more indie edge.

- Camemberu

March 19, 2012 | Full review

From The Manufacturer

From the beloved director of Chocolat and the Oscar®-winning screenwriter of Slumdog Millionaire (2008) comes the inspirational comedy Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. A visionary Sheikh (Amr Waked) believes his passion for the peaceful pastime of salmon fishing can enrich the lives of his people, and he dreams of bringing the sport to the not so fish-friendly desert. Willing to spare no expense, he instructs his representative (Emily Blunt) to turn the dream into reality, an extraordinary feat that will require the involvement of Britain's leading fisheries expert (Ewan McGregor), who happens to think the project both absurd and unachievable. That is, until the Prime Minister's overzealous press secretary (Kristin Scott Thomas) latches onto it as a 'good will' story. Now, this unlikely team will put it all on the line and embark on an upstream journey of faith and fish to prove the impossible, possible.