Lasse Hallstrom (CHOCOLAT, MY LIFE AS A DOG) presents this strong, quiet, chillingly deep adaptation of the popular novel by E. Annie Proulx. In a fishing port set in the Canadian province of Newfoundland, newspaper journalist Quoyle (Kevin Spacey), his young daughter Bunny (Alyssa Gainer), and his stern aunt Agnis Hamm (Dame Judi Dench) have reclaimed their ancestral home, which stood vacant for 40 years perched over the raging sea on the edge of a cliff. The fresh air and the mundane routine of the sleepy village act as a balm for Quoyle's wounds. Having grown up with unhappy parents who cautioned him that he'd never amount to anything, Quoyle thought he'd finally found a stroke of luck when he fell in love with Petal (a surprisingly slutty but no less beautiful Cate Blanchett), Bunny's mother. However, after Petal's sudden death, and the simultaneous passing of his loveless parents, Quoyle's migration from downtrodden Poughkeepsie, N.Y. to coastal Canada is his salvation. As Quoyle gains confidence and pride daily through his coworkers at the tiny newspaper the Gammy Bird, through his friendship with Wavey (a lovely Julianne Moore), and through his reconciliation with some spooky family secrets from the distant past, Quoyle, Bunny, and Agnis slowly find new direction, new hope, and the beginnings of a new life.

Theatrical release: December 25, 2001

DVD Features:

Region 1
Keep Case
Anamorphic Widescreen
Audio:
TBD
Additional Release Material:
Audio Commentary - 1. Lasse Hallstrom - Director
Behind the Scenes Footage
Featurette - 1. "Dive Beneath the Surface"
Interactive Features:
Scene Access
Interactive Menus
Text/Photo Galleries:
Stills/Photos

Distributor Notes: The Shipping News

Academy Award(R)-winning stars Kevin Spacey (AMERICAN BEAUTY, Best Actor, 1998) and Judi Dench (SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE, Best Supporting Actress, 1998) join talents with Julianne Moore (HANNIBAL) and Cate Blanchett (THE LORD OF THE RINGS) in this deeply moving motion picture from the director of CHOCOLAT and THE CIDER HOUSE RULES. After tragedy strikes, Quoyle (Spacey) moves with his daughter from upstate New York to his ancestral home in a small Newfoundland fishing village. With a job at the local newspaper and developing romance with a woman (Moore) who lives with her own demons, Quoyle is transformed by this place of magic, beauty, and hardship. In a compelling story based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, Quoyle's past melds with his present in an inspirational journey of self-discovery and second chances.

Source: Buena Vista Home Entertainment

Kevin Spacey: American Actor
Julianne Moore: Actress, THE HOURS, FAR FROM HEAVEN, BOOGIE NIGHTS
Judi Dench: Oscar-winning British actress, SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE
Cate Blanchett: Australian Actress
Scott Glenn: Actor, JOURNEY TO THE END OF NIGHT, W.
Rhys Ifans: British actor, NOTTING HILL
Gordon Pinsent: Canadian Actor
Jason Behr: Actor
Larry Pine: 
Jeannetta Arnette: 
Robert Joy: Actor/"Shadows And Fog"
Alyssa Gainer: Actress, THE SHIPPING NEWS (2001)
Lauren Gainer: Actress, THE SHIPPING NEWS (2001)
Kaitlyn Gainer: Actress, THE SHIPPING NEWS (2001)
Will MCallister: Actor, THE SHIPPING NEWS (2001)

Lasse Hallstrom: Swedish Director

Irwin Winkler: American Producer
Leslie Holleran: Producer/ CHOCOLAT (2000)
Linda Goldstein Knowlton: Producer

Robert Nelson Jacobs: screenwriter

Christopher Young: Composer, COPYCAT/THE SHIPPING NEWS

"...Pictorially sumptuous....A seamlessly woven, handsomely illustrated digest of the novel's characters and incidents..."
"...Markedly well-cast....Moore's natural warmth gives the movie a real pulse and the qualities of resiliency that inform the novel..."
"...The film is beautifully shot....[Moore] allows the film to breathe and gives it much needed poignancy..."
"...Enjoyable, funny and engaging....You'll never be anything less than entertained..."