Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a 2011 British romantic comedy-drama film directed by Lasse Hallström and starring Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas and Amr Waked. Based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Paul Torday, and a screenplay by Simon Beaufoy, the film is about a fisheries expert who is recruited by a consultant to help realise a sheikh's vision of bringing the sport of fly fishing to the Yemen desert, initiating an upstream journey of faith to make the impossible possible. The film was shot on location in the United Kingdom in London and Newtonmore in Inverness-shire and in Morocco from August to October 2010. The film premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival. The film received generally positive reviews upon its release, and earned over $34 million in revenue worldwide.
Plot
Fisheries expert Alfred Jones receives an email from financial adviser Harriet Chetwode-Talbot, seeking advice on a project to bring salmon fishing to the Yemen—a project being bankrolled by a wealthy Yemeni sheikh and supported by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Alfred dismisses the project as "fundamentally unfeasible" because the Yemen cannot provide the necessary environment for salmon. Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister's press secretary, Patricia Maxwell, suggests the salmon fishing story to the Prime Minister's office as a positive story to help improve relations between Britain and the Islamic world.
Alfred meets Harriet to discuss the project, but despite Harriet correcting his misconceptions of the Yemen environment, Alfred is convinced that the project is foolhardy. Alfred's boss, under pressure from Patricia, forces Alfred to accept a position on the project. Alfred considers resigning rather than ruin his reputation in the scientific community, but is convinced by his wife that they need his income and pension.
Harriet arranges for Alfred to meet the Sheikh at his estate in the Scottish Highlands. The Sheikh is excited to meet Alfred as he is the inventor of the "Woolly Jones" fishing fly. While the Sheikh acknowledges that the project might sound crazy, he still believes that fishing is a noble pursuit that promotes harmony and requires immense faith.
After his wife accepts a position in Geneva, Alfred devotes himself to the salmon project. Although painfully shy, he enjoys working with Harriet and they begin to make progress. Their enthusiasm is interrupted, however, when Harriet learns that her new boyfriend, British special forces Captain Robert Meyers, is missing in action. Devastated, Harriet withdraws to her apartment. When Alfred visits her, she gets upset, thinking he just wants her to return to work, but then she realises he has come to comfort her, and the two embrace.
Meanwhile, the Sheikh continues his work, despite radicals who accuse him of introducing Western ways to their region. Patricia informs the Sheikh that because of opposition to removing salmon from British rivers they will need to use farmed salmon. The Sheikh does not believe that salmon bred in captivity will survive and rejects Patricia's offer, ending the British Government's involvement in the project. Alfred resigns his government job to continue with the project.
After a confrontation with his wife in which he realises that their marriage is over and that he is in love with Harriet, Alfred convinces the Sheikh to give the farmed salmon a try. As the two are fishing, a Yemeni radical attempts to assassinate the Sheikh, who is saved by Alfred casting his fishing line towards the assassin. Soon after, they return to the Yemen, where Harriet and Alfred continue to grow closer. After a moonlight swim, he asks her if there was a "theoretical possibility" of the two of them ending up together. She accepts with a kiss on his cheek, but says she will need some time.
At a press conference in the Yemen, with the Foreign Secretary, Patricia reunites Harriet with her boyfriend Robert who has survived the counter-terrorism operation. The PR stunt leaves Alfred heartbroken. That night, Harriet realises her feelings for Robert have changed, and when Alfred gets a text message from his wife asking him to return, he declines.
The following day the fish are released from their holding tanks. The fish swim upstream, and everyone celebrates the success of the project. While Robert and the Foreign Secretary fly-fish for the photographers, terrorists break into the dam upstream and open the flood gates. Although most people survive the resulting flash flood, the valley is left in ruins. The Sheikh blames himself for the tragedy, and vows to rebuild—this time with the support of the local community.