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The Shipping News
The Shipping News: 
The Shipping News follows Quoyle (Kevin Spacey) who throughout all of his life has had to contend with emotional obstacles. After being raised by a
psychologically abusive father, he manages to find a menial job as an ink-setter for the local newspaper and one day accidentally meets Petal (Cate Blanchett). After only a one time fling, Petal becomes pregnant and reluctantly becomes involved with Quoyle and their new daughter. Not knowing anything else in his life, Quoyle has convinced himself that he is in love with Petal. When leaving him for the
umpteenth time, she dies in a car accident leaving Quoyle alone with his daughter. Desperately needing an escape from the distressing life he has come to know, Quoyle and his daughter move to Newfoundland, Canada where their family roots originated. It is here where he is able to find a job that he is able to thrive in as a local journalist covering "the shipping news." Quoyle also discovers different types of relationships with people who in turn help him to find out about himself as he slowly re-invents himself.
The movie is actually a lot more intricate than that little summary so don't judge it based on that. The characters in the film are all very complex and very well-performed by a great cast. The Quoyle character has a very agonizing story and the way Kevin Spacey handles it makes you feel immediately compassionate towards him. The versatile Cate Blanchett does a wonderful job playing the horrible mother role to near perfection and Julianne Moore virtually becomes a single mother suffering in silent anguish. Since the film is very much character driven,
The Shipping News provides some great insight into some very intriguing characters. The audience should feel like they've actually met them by the end of the
movie. It's the first profound film I've seen in a while so it was a very nice treat.
-Tso
Copyright 2002 Tso Long Productions ©