My wife and I had seen trailers for On a Clear Day in various places and meant to see it (honestly, we did!) in theaters, but it slipped out before we were able to hit a theater. Well, as things go these days, it was released on DVD and thanks to the magic of Netflix, we were able to get the movie delivered right to our mailbox and from there right to our entertainment center, where it contentedly waited for the period of nearly a month before we actually sat down to watch it a few nights ago.
It’s a quirky, if formulaic, feel-good family movie about a Scottish shipbuilder who quits his job in a fit of conscience and then flounders about looking for a purpose to his life. Said shipbuilder regularly swims laps in his local health club’s pool along with a group of his best friends and, through a series of events, get it into his head to swim the English channel. He enters into a rigorous training regimen and enlists the skills, talents and assistance of his various friends, attempting to keep the whole affair out of the view of his wife and son. Promises are made, secrets are told, tears are shed, etc., but it is all handled with a light touch and there are some genuinely amusing moments to the whole affair. The thick Scottish brogues the actors all have/affect help, too.
I’d give it a 2.5-3/4 stars – a decent selection as an alternative to standard “chick flick” fare if your Significant Other is in the mood for such. *chuckle*
