Obviously a pitch for Oscars glory, The Shipping News is not at all dissimilar in tone or atmosphere to Lasse Hallstrom’s last two roller-coaster thrill-rides, Chocolat and The Cider House Rules).

There’s acting talent to burn here, which makes the film all the more frustrating an experience. A subdued Kevin Spacey stars as lonely loser Quoyle, a bedraggled individual with no job and no money who’s recovering from a failed marriage to an abusive nympho slut (Cate Blanchett!!) He’s collected by his long-lost auntie (Judi Dench – was any cow ever this sacred?) and, with his daughter in tow, heads off for Newfoundland, a place so dull and boring it provides an absolutely perfect setting for Shipping News’s voyage of self-discovery. Here, he lands a glamorous gig as Shipping Correspondent for the local rag (how green am I with envy), slowly heals his inner spiritual wounds, takes an absolute lifetime falling in love with a widowed childcare worker (Julianne Moore)... and that’s about it, really.

For those who care for such things, The Shipping News has no shortage of long silences, and many sweeping panoramic views that will no doubt have the Newfoundland Tourist Board creaming themselves in self-acclamation. But though the film’s MOR style and preocupation with middle-aged epiphany might infuse it with potential appeal for ageing cinemaphobes on their annual outing; Hallstrom directs with extreme competence, and none of the actors let the side down – but as entertainment, The Shipping News is quite lamentable.