Kettle of Fish

Mel (Matthew Modine) is an aging jazz musician in New York City. He is a "player" in the world of romance, too, zigzagging from one pretty female to another, but always coming home alone to his goldfish, Daphne. Yet, he is very aware that he is "not getting any younger" and that it is time for him to commit to someone. As such, Mel decides to move in with a pretty thing and sublet his apartment. His new renter is Ginger (Gina Gershon), a bespectacled British biologist, who has arrived in the Big Apple to study amphibians. But, unhappily for Mel, his relationship skills are so bad that his girlfriend soon kicks him out and he needs his old apartment back NOW. Ginger soon points out that a contract is present and that she needs time to find another set of digs. So, they decide to share the place, with Ginger getting the bedroom and Mel residing in the living room. There is a definite atmosphere of dislike brewing between the two of them. Then, too, Mel has a crush on a newlywed woman, Diana (Christy Scott Cashman) who he met on the ferry to one of his gigs. He even takes a job as an elevator man in her building so that he can get closer to her. But, as she is married to a very rich gentleman (Fisher Stevens) it appears unlikely that she will return Mel's affections. Where will the course of true love run? This is truly a nice little film for those fans of romantic comedy. First, the cast is quite nice, with Modine giving a wonderfully nuanced performance as the misguided musician in search of life's purpose. Stevens, too, is very funny as the self-absorbed husband while Cashman scores big points as the beautiful but empty-headed bride. As for Gershon, she shines brightly, in a role that runs counter-clockwise to many of the racier parts in her previous films. With a nice British accent and her beauty semi-hidden under her glasses, she easily gives one of her best performances ever. All of the niceties of film-making, such as good costuming, attractive settings and fine camera work, are present. Congratulations, also, to the imaginative script and the confident direction of one Claudia Myers. In brief, if you are fishing for a new flick in the world of romcom entertainment, you would be well advised to "catch" this one. Grab it at the nearest video outlet, pop some kettle corn in the micro, and kick off your shoes for a nice little watch.

Matthew Modine and Gina Gershon do have chemistry in this pleasant romantic comedy. They both look fantastic as well. My favorite moment happens during Modine's pursuit of the unattainable female, offering a surprising twist that sets this Lothario on a reverse course that we have been rooting for the whole time. After pondering this for too long a time, I have to say it made no sense for Ms. Gershon to take on the English accent. She does it better than Costner did in Robin Hood, but that's not saying much. With no reference to England, without even a nod to different customs that might affect the courtship, what purpose did it serve? Still, the movie looks great, the small supporting cast is excellent, the script (complete with Gershon's charming improvised asides) is tight and well-constructed with both cinematography and soundtrack offering appropriate support to the lightness of the themes. Overall it has a nice style that grows on you. Here's to writer-director Claudia Myers who has crafted, if not a home run, a solid double play.

the movie is fine for what it is......everybody has different tastes... the old saying is one man's bread is another man's poison...i like gershon very much.. and modine is fine as well.... i am a big movie buff and i have been for almost 50 years...every movie cannot be a gone with the wind or Casablanca.... and there are poor movies out there for sure.. but this movie entertained me because i was not looking for anything like a classic... now.. i admit i saw this film by accident on cable.. so i did not pay for it but still i think the movie has some redeeming qualities and there are some people that would really enjoy it....the movie is set as a light romantic comedy and it does fit that.. One additional comment i must make after reading all the negative comments as well as the positive ones is i have my opinion on the film and so does everyone else... no one's opinion is any more valid than someone else... my best friend loves sushi... i can't stand it.. does that mean there is something wrong with my taste buds... no it does not... so there are people who like this film and there are some who do not.. i will hold to my opinion but if you do not like it hey different stokes for different folks, watch it and form your own opinion..........

I too first saw this film at the Tribeca Film festival on the opening night which was sold out in a 900+ seat theatre!! I had no expectations of the film but got completely caught up (as did the rest of the audience) as soon as the credits started to roll. First of all, Matthew Modine is great in anything he does and this was no exception. After seeing him play some psychos and some intense roles, this was a refreshing departure where Modine was able to show off his comedic abilities. The supporting cast was stellar - especially Fisher Stevens and Isiah Whitlock. I'm just so tired of all the jaded rhetoric in entertainment - this film was light, fun, funny, had moments of almost innocence - a film a whole family could watch together. It steers away from foul language, anything risqué and at its core is about a handful of people earnestly looking for true love. Albeit they make some mistakes, but some of them actually get there.

From my rating of "8" out of 10, it's obvious I thought this film was worth my (and most other people's) time. Generally, the same can be said of any movie scored above 5.0. This movie's rating probably suffers significantly because 1)not enough people are seeing it, 2)the proportion of women seeing it and voting at IMDb is not high enough, and 3)statistics often are senseless. To illustrate the latter point, an individual named George Walker Bush actually set a Gallup poll record of 91 per cent job approval as U.S. president, topping the COMBINED high points of Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln--both of whom are where "W" will never go: the top of Mt. Rushmore. Yet this same Bush set an all-time low of 11 per cent shortly thereafter. Conclusion: most polling is a big humbug. IMDb can be especially so, and you do not need to look further than the User Rating detail page for KETTLE OF FISH to prove it. In the demographic breakdown (as of this writing, of course), IMDb says TWO females under 18 voted, and their scores averaged out to "9.4!" Clearly, this is impossible; the scenario yielding the closest outcome to this "average" would be one of the two voted the movie a "10" and the other one clicked on "9," but THIS results in a 9.5 average! Perhaps IMDb has an electronic system sophisticated enough to count hanging chads--I mean, clicks? No, I don't think so. To sum up, if you're a male under 18 (the one who has voted so far has an average rating of "1," which seems plausible enough), and want car chases, *, gun fights, *, slit throats, *, zombies, and * in your flicks, DO NOT RENT this movie! On the other hand, if you're older and\or female, and appreciate a well-written script, believable but quirky characters, and original jazz (heavy on the sax), give KETTLE OF FISH a chance.

Kettle of Fish is for those who like their romantic comedies to seem sophisticated while sipping a glass of wine, but secretly want to be eating pizza, and unwinding after a long week. Nothing too demanding, just flows according to the the rules of the genre: jazz musician, non-committal bachelor type, leases his flat to English research repressed but stunning woman, sparks fly, musician tries other relationships but gradually realizes what's going on.... (It that counts as a spoiler you're probably watching the wrong kind of film...) Matthew Modine is good as the bachelor fast approaching his sell-by date - he exudes a kind of laid-back charm that works well. Gina Gershon is too British in places - honestly, her accent makes "A Brief Encounter" sound like low down cockney by comparison, if you can forgive it and just treat it as OTT primness then a good time is to be had by all. The fish has real potential, and will no doubt get work. As will the frog. Iguana not so sure about. While utterly predictable in its ending as befits its romantic nature, it is surprisingly good in its conversations and silly enough in the chase to have a kookie charm of it's own. Smooth sounds, and fun. My wife and I found this very good in places (Esppecially the conversations the male characters had with each other), but felt the distractions in the plot were trying too hard to be funny peculiar, rather than funny ha-ha. Overall, though, very pleasant and a good warm romantic movie. We liked it - but we would want the laughs to be tones down and the conversations to be tighter to really love it - worth a rental...

For the life of me I can't understand the good reviews on this piece of crap. It was pointless. Matthew Modine was horribly miscast as a leading ladies man. Gina Gershon, well, others have said it, but I'll reiterate, why the stupid accent? Totally unnecessary. And her acting was just bad. I don't know if she was thrown by the accent, or what. There was no chemistry between these two. And the girl Modine was in love with, suddenly she's shoving half a head of lettuce in her mouth and acting in a goofy way? Where did that come from? I think we were supposed to feel sorry for her as we saw her marriage to a workaholic begin to crumble, but frankly, I couldn't care less about any of these people.

This is one of those movies that appears on cable at like two in the afternoon to entertain bored housewives while they iron. The acting is second rate. Poor Mathew Modine seems to sleepwalk through the whole film. And god help Gina Gershon. Her accent is too over the top. It sounds nothing like an true English woman. It sounds forced and phony, much like her acting. She should stick to what she does best, lesbian showgirl con-artist who plays in a rock & roll band and has a drug problem. The other characters are no better. They are two dimensional. empty, vapid and silly. How are we to supposed to care about these people. At one point Christy Scott Cashman get's lost in Central Park. Really? It's not that hard to navigate Central Park. Just follow any path out. Not only did I not care about ANY of the characters,I downright hated them. The only reason I even stayed with this train-wreck of a film was Fisher Stevens. Even his brilliant humor couldn't save this dying Fish. Each scene is typical romantic comedy fare and nothing is left to surprise us. The script was awful as was the acting. If you catch this Fish throw it back!

I'm a fan of Matthew Modine, but this film--which I stumbled upon on cable--is absolutely witless. I see that the screenwriter and director were one and the same, so there was no one around to check her worst instincts. There are no surprises, no original lines, and no original characters. The goldfish was basically the most sympathetic character. What a waste of all this acting talent. Given how expensive it is to film in New York these days, I have to wonder how this got made in the first place. And if you're wondering why I watched it at all, it came on after a film that I like on cable and I left it on while I worked at the computer. It's not a very demanding picture!

I really liked the movie! Though its my wife who dragged me to see it -well, it's a romantic comedy- , I had a great time. The movie is clearly an excellent romantic comedy but I felt it was also much more and spoke a lot to guys issues, such as moving together, who's the right girl and how to make a move towards her. Its very funny and packed with some great lines. I loved the jazzy music, which works with the rhythm of the movie quite well. Gina Gershon is very sexy, but in a new way that suits her well. I had never seen C. Cashman on screen but her dance number is something I'll remember. I also liked to see the guy from American pie and an ex bond girl... Go see it.