The Fisherman And His Wife (2005) @ Der Fischer Und Seine Frau

A fish veterinarian, the real McKoi.

At a glance:

What does one do when a woman outdoes a man in just about everythin? Relivin the 19^th century Grimm fairytale, the ageless issue between money and happiness is tackled with delightfully contemporary angles in The Fisherman And His Wife @ Der Fischer Und Seine Frau (2005). When fish vet Otto (Christian Ulmen) meets girl-next-door Ida (Alexandra Maria Lara) on a business trip to Japan, it was love at first sight and they tie the knot instantly. As Ida moves up in life with her brilliant idea of launchin a koi-themed line of clothin, the simplistic Otto refuses luxury or any sort of material improvement in life. Otto can’t understand why a big home is better than a smaller one, no more than Ida can how a man can stay so content with only the simple pleasures in life as comfort. As Otto refuses to do more lucrative fin transplants for the high-society collectors (he says it isn’t good for the fish), Ida’s koi apparel makes it big and her stardom as a fashion designer beckons. All the time, a pair of tategoi (‘maybe-fish’ that might change into an expensive variety as they grow) narrates their marital frustration with casual comic takes.

Love at first sight.

Bad news on the doorstep:

If you look at the visuals, it looks as if they're all from different movies. Yes, it's dissonant cross-cultural adventure that's probably serves a tourist fodder better than box office collection. Naturally, the Germans brought this in for a film festival in Malaysia.

Perennial wonderment:

Koi-themed clothes. For real.

Did you know that koi means love in Japanese? Neither did I but it’s not true anyway. Koi is a homophone for love, in Japanese. No surprise then that the oriental carp is a long-time token symbol of affection to the Japanese, just like Mandarin oranges (“kam”) are gold to the Chinese.

Reminds me of:

Alexandra Maria Lara & Simon Verhoeven.

Director & scribe Doris Dörrie

All the arguments I've ever had with so many women on rejectin material success. I wish I could sit them down to watch this. The Fisherman And His Wife is invitingly poignant without enforcin too much cod philosophy on a general audience, if you'd pardon the pun. Punctuated by catchy English-language songs, it feels like watchin any other Hollywood rom-com, only that it is clever as much as it is colourful. Losin passion is the bane of any marriage and rediscoverin that element is key to keepin a conventional relationship alive – but to have it told in various fish-related analogies (is a bigger aquarium always good?) gives any viewer so many easy anecdotes to amuse oneself with.

Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
Doris Dörrie’s little gem is a winner. Much like its S&M dominatrix outfits and koi-motif scarves to the snobbish elitists and wacky fish doctors, The Fisherman And His Wife is the kind of assorted comedy that provides for anybody with some semblance of a funny bone. How should any fishy story end? Always swimmingly. ★★★1/2
Bonus material:

Looks fun, whatever that is happenin here.

Salmon Fishing In The Yemen (2011)

"There's just this small matter of getting water.
You know that fish kinda like water, right?"

At a glance:

You'd be forgiven for thinkin this was a documentary on aquaculture. Salmon Fishing In TheYemen (2011) is actually an oddball dramedy (with a very misleadin trailer!) adapted off a novel, the bizarre titular activity bein a proposed joint venture by the British government press secretary (Kristin Scott Thomas) to improve Anglo-Yemeni relations by offsettin violent news from the Middle East in the media. A reluctant fisheries expert (Ewan McGregor) has Asperger's but finds unlikely romance with the troubled consultant (Emily Blunt) to a rich Yemeni sheikh (Amr Waked), the "visionary" who's fundin the entire project to the tune of £50 million. The director is Lasse Hallström, whose rather romantic CV includes Hachiko (2009), Chocolat (2000) and The Cider House Rules (1999). It premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival, which is serendipitous to me because this is the first movie I've watched in a Canadian cinema since I moved here to Toronto - and also because I attempted to cook my wife the same fish for dinner prior to the show. Both fish and film were a letdown.

Bad news on the doorstep:

Emily Blunt shouldn't be too hopeful
for a sequel return in
Papaya Growing In The Arctic.

While fishin punters seem to have a litany of grouses about the tech aspects of the premise and also the fishin that is depicted in the film, a casual moviegoer can nevertheless still complain that this movie simply lost itself midway and didn't know what it wanted to be. The McGregor-Blunt romantic pairin and various backstories took themselves too seriously and destroyed the winsome quirky comedy that this should have been, somethin that only Kristin Scott Thomas's overzealous character tried correctly to achieve. The feelin at the end credits was similar to havin had watched Larry Crowne (2011).

Perennial wonderment:

There's somethin terribly romantic about the life cycle of the salmon. You know - swimmin all the way back to the place that you were born just to spawn and then to die. This was somewhat referenced in the movie, when McGregor's character starts to turn around in a crowd that was movin in one direction; and also in another shot when the first fish swims upstream. It alluded to not wantin to live a pedestrian life, somethin that McGregor's character found himself doin. Someone really ought to make a superhero movie in the vein of Kick-Ass (2010) or Super (2010) and call it Salmon Man or somethin.

Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?

Some of the big name media were too kind to this. Should've been a much better movie.★★1/2
Trailer for the curious:

Bonus material:

Emily Blunt - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen Interview at TIFF 201

At Cineplex Odeon Sheppard Cinemas in Toronto

Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999)

Just once in my life, I would like to try this.

At a glance:
Honestly, this Rob Schneider fella (pic) ain't funny but if he ever starred in a movie that was, it would be this. Titular character is a loser of a fish expert turned unlikely gigolo, findin himself reluctantly renderin his so-called services to various women of ill-nature. Tasteless comedy, really - but it did teach me what it means when someone asks "have you ever thrown a toothpick into a volcano?"

Bad news on the doorstep:
Not sure if this is bad news but Schneider said in an interview that there will be no more additions to this box office wonder and that he was kinda relieved the European Gigolo (2005) sequel bombed because that means he'd never have to do it again. He admits hatin to be the character.
Reminds me of:
This bird I used to know, who oddly thought this movie was funny, too.

Most memorable line:
Deuce: "Kate, you have a smile that could melt an iceberg. Your lips are as sweet as honey. You may only have one leg, but it's the most beautiful leg in the world."
Amacam joker, berapa bintang lu mau kasi?
10 years on, I still remember most of the scenes and their correspondin lines vividly. Ah the good ol' days. A guilty pleasure.★★★