The reviewers that downrated this film are entitled to their opinions, but so am I. My opinion is that this is a good story, and it was told without leaning on overstated action scenes and unbelievable violence. There were a few goofs here and there, but nothing that made me dislike the overall story or the screenplay itself.
This is a story of two brothers who were brought up apart from each other but who came back together because the younger brother wanted to see how his older brother managed a life that was a world away from the one that the younger one felt he was being led into by his father. Charley was the younger one, a half- brother to Tom, the older one. Tom was a fishing boat captain while Charley was headed to law school, following his father, a successful lawyer. Charley wanted to see what fishing boats were like, so he asked Tom to hire him as a deckhand.
Tom's boat sank on their first trip together, and Tom suspected that the owner of the fleet of boats that included the one Tom commanded had not kept the boat properly maintained. That led Tom to confront the owner, an arrogant young non-fisherman and the confrontation left Tom unemployed.
Tom's father, Ray ( played by Tommy Lee Jones) asked Tom to captain the "Finestkind", Ray's scallop dredger. Tom agreed, but disregarded Ray's order to fish according to Ray's plan, and took the boat into Canadian waters. The Canadian Coast Guard caught Tom in the act of poaching scallops in Canadian waters, which led to the boat and the catch being impounded. The catch was seized and the boat was held for a $100,000 fine that would have to be paid before the boat would be returned to Ray.
This leads to the real drama of the story. You'll want to watch what happens. The story shows how important family ties are. There is some violence, but it is by no means a violent crime drama. Maybe that is what makes some people dislike the film, but it was a pleasant change for me given the violent action films that are so prevalent today.
This is a story of two brothers who were brought up apart from each other but who came back together because the younger brother wanted to see how his older brother managed a life that was a world away from the one that the younger one felt he was being led into by his father. Charley was the younger one, a half- brother to Tom, the older one. Tom was a fishing boat captain while Charley was headed to law school, following his father, a successful lawyer. Charley wanted to see what fishing boats were like, so he asked Tom to hire him as a deckhand.
Tom's boat sank on their first trip together, and Tom suspected that the owner of the fleet of boats that included the one Tom commanded had not kept the boat properly maintained. That led Tom to confront the owner, an arrogant young non-fisherman and the confrontation left Tom unemployed.
Tom's father, Ray ( played by Tommy Lee Jones) asked Tom to captain the "Finestkind", Ray's scallop dredger. Tom agreed, but disregarded Ray's order to fish according to Ray's plan, and took the boat into Canadian waters. The Canadian Coast Guard caught Tom in the act of poaching scallops in Canadian waters, which led to the boat and the catch being impounded. The catch was seized and the boat was held for a $100,000 fine that would have to be paid before the boat would be returned to Ray.
This leads to the real drama of the story. You'll want to watch what happens. The story shows how important family ties are. There is some violence, but it is by no means a violent crime drama. Maybe that is what makes some people dislike the film, but it was a pleasant change for me given the violent action films that are so prevalent today.