Fisherman's Friends (film)

Fisherman's Friends is a 2019 British comedy-drama film directed by Chris Foggin from a screenplay by Nick Moorcroft, Meg Leonard and Piers Ashworth.

Fisherman's Friends
Directed byChris Foggin
Written by
Produced by
  • Nick Moorcroft
  • Meg Leonard
  • James Spring
Starring
CinematographySimon Tindall
Edited byJohnny Daukes
Music byRupert Christie
Production
companies
  • Head Gear Films
  • Powder Keg Pictures
  • Fred Films
  • Kreo Films
  • Legacy
  • Metrol Technology
  • BondIt Media Capital
Distributed byEntertainment Film Distributors
Release date
  • 15 March 2019 (2019-03-15) (United Kingdom)
Running time
112 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office$11,647,462[1]

The film is based on a true story about Fisherman's Friends, a group of Cornish fishermen from Port Isaac who were signed by Universal Records and achieved a top 10 hit with their debut album of traditional sea shanties.[2]

The film stars Daniel Mays, James Purefoy, David Hayman, Dave Johns, Sam Swainsbury, Tuppence Middleton, Noel Clarke, Christian Brassington, Maggie Steed and Jade Anouka.

Plot

A fast living, cynical London music executive, Danny, reluctantly heads to Cornwall on his colleague Henry's stag weekend, where he's pranked by his boss, Troy, into trying to sign a group of shanty-singing fishermen. Danny becomes the ultimate ‘fish out of water’, struggling to gain the respect and enthusiasm of the unlikely boy band that consists of Jim, Jago, Leadville and Rowan, who all value friendship and community over fame and fortune. Attempting to overcome the fishermen's scepticism about the music business, Danny finds himself drawn into the community, has his integrity tested and ultimately is shown the meaning of loyalty, love and friendship. This forces Danny to re-evaluate what really matters in life, ultimately giving him the chance of a different kind of success which leads to him falling in love with Jim's daughter, Alwyn.

Cast in contractual order

Two-Michelin-starred Port Isaac chef Nathan Outlaw has a cameo role as a man who has unwisely parked his car where the tide can swamp it.[3]

Production

Filming
The Golden Lion doubled as the village pub owned by Rowan

Filming commenced on 30 April 2018 on location in Port Isaac, Cornwall, and London for five weeks.[4] All members of the band have cameos in the film and worked as consultants on the film.

Reception

Box office

The film was released on 503 screens on 15 March 2019 in the United Kingdom and debuted at #2 in the UK Box office chart, grossing $1,534,908 in its opening weekend behind global box office phenomenon Captain Marvel. The film was #3 in its second weekend taking $1,285,332. The film was #4 in its third weekend taking $820,293. As of Friday 10 May 2020, the film had grossed $11,553,041.

Controversy

Noel Clarke, a Black British actor, was credited on the UK poster but his image was not featured. Writing on Twitter, Clarke said "not one of these other actors spoke up for me when I was left off the poster".[5] However, Clarke was, at that time, the subject of allegations of bullying and sexual harassment.[6]

Soundtrack

Island Records released the film's original soundtrack titled Keep Hauling - Music From The Movie on 15 March 2019.[7]

Track listing:

  1. Keep Hauling
  2. Nelson's Blood
  3. John Kanaka
  4. The Cost of High Barbary
  5. South Australia
  6. Little Liz I Love You
  7. Widow Woman
  8. Le Capitaine de San Malo
  9. Blow the Man Down
  10. Shanty Man
  11. Oh You New York Girls
  12. The 'Trelawny' National Anthem
  13. The Leaving Shanty
  14. No Hopers, Jokers & Rogues
  15. Fisherman's Blues
  16. (What Shall We Do with the) Drunken Sailor
  17. Union of Different Kinds

Stage musical adaptation
Main article: Fisherman's Friends: The Musical

A stage musical called Fisherman's Friends: The Musical, based on the band's true story and the 2019 film, made its world premiere at the Hall for Cornwall in Truro in October 2021, written by Brad Birch and directed by James Grieve.[8]

Sequel

A sequel, about the band singing at Glastonbury, was released on 19 August 2022. The film is called Fisherman's Friends: One and All.[9]

References
  1. "Fisherman's Friends (2019)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  2. Alberge, Dalya (13 May 2018). "From shanties to the screen: Fisherman's Friends inspire feelgood UK film". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  3. Trewhela, Lee (15 March 2019). "Fisherman's Friends film is a Cornish cliché but one you will love". Cornwall Live. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  4. Harding, Laura (8 May 2018). "Production begins on Port Isaac's Fisherman's Friends film starring Noel Clarke". The Irish Independent. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  5. "Noel Clarke: I was left off Fisherman's Friends poster – and none of the cast spoke up". The Guardian. 29 May 2020. Retrieved 4 May 2021.
  6. Kale, Sirin; Osborne, Lucy (29 April 2021). "'Sexual predator': actor Noel Clarke accused of groping, harassment and bullying by 20 women". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  7. "Fisherman's Friends' Soundtrack Album Announced". filmmusicreporter.com. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  8. Cornwall, Hall for. "Hall for Cornwall | Theatre & Arts in Cornwall". www.hallforcornwall.co.uk. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  9. "UK Box Office Hit 'Fisherman's Friends' To Get Australia-Set Movie Sequel — Cannes". deadline.com. 17 May 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
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