The Grand Seduction

A withering Canadian fishing village hopes to land a new factory to revitalize the local economy, but they must have a local doctor, so the town's mayor (Brendan Gleeson) schemes to waylay a just-passing-through plastic surgeon (Taylor Kitsch) and convince him that this is just the place to put down roots. Written by Michael Dowse and Ken Scott and directed by Don McKellar, the movie is another specimen of that British whimsy that stretches from 1949's Kind Hearts and Coronets to The Full Monty and beyond—which is a little odd, since it's an English-language remake of a French-Canadian movie of 2003. The villagers' chicanery is sometimes more exasperating than amusing, but the two stars, along with a supporting cast of eccentric actors largely unknown outside Canada, keep the charm level high enough to entertain.