Here’s a vote for ‘Mooseport’
Gene Hackman, bristling with wit and energy, is at his amusing best in the robust comedy “Welcome to Mooseport,” in which he has a perfect foil in “Everybody Loves Raymond’s” Ray Romano. Donald Petrie’s lively direction and Tom Schulman’s clever script serve well a fine cast that includes Marcia Gay Harden (a supporting actress Oscar nominee for “Mystic River”), Maura Tierney, Christine Baranski, Fred Savage and Rip Torn.
Hackman’s Monroe Cole has just left the White House as a president who is phenomenally popular with just about everyone except his mercenary ex-wife, Charlotte (Christine Baranski), intent on taking him to the cleaners in their divorce settlement. Having already lost their Baltimore estate to Charlotte, Monroe descends with customary presidential fanfare upon the picturesque town of Mooseport, Maine, site of his elegant vacation retreat.
The last thing on Monroe’s mind is public service as he pleasurably contemplates a lucrative speaking engagement schedule, writing his memoirs and overseeing the construction of an impressive presidential library. But the Eagle, which is Monroe’s nickname, has landed on the eve of a local mayoral election, and the town fathers press him to run. It’s out of the question -- until he realizes that it would be a way of establishing Mooseport as his legal residence, thus protecting his home from Charlotte.
However, when Monroe agrees to run he doesn’t realize that Romano’s Handy Harrison, hardware store proprietor and plumber, has also entered the race. The diffident Handy is willing to withdraw -- until he discovers that Monroe has invited his long-term veterinarian girlfriend Sally (Tierney) out to dinner. Sally is only too happy to accept, since she and Handy have been romantically involved for six years, and she has grown tired of waiting for him to pop the question.
The stage thus has been set for a livelier than expected campaign. The seemingly unprepossessing Handy is a genuinely kind and honest man, well-liked and respected in the community. Handy proves sharper and more resourceful than Monroe imagined; pretty soon he brings in his canny campaign manager (Rip Torn) -- and risks losing the respect of his devoted executive secretary (Harden) for tactics she considers beneath him.
The best thing about “Welcome to Mooseport” is that the filmmakers know just how seriously to take their premise. They resist the down and dirty and the all-outlandish in the unfolding of the campaign and instead allow both Monroe and Handy to emerge as immensely likable men.
Monroe has some Clintonian glibness and some Johnsonian expansiveness but as played by Hackman with an affectionate satirical touch the ex-president is an appealingly rugged guy, swift and shrewd but also open and even vulnerable. Romano’s Handy is a classic Everyman, a bit nerdy but also possessed of the right stuff when under pressure.
Harden’s Grace and Tierney’s Sally are both strong, smart women who find both Monroe and Handy, respectively, slow to appreciate their feelings. Chic in Chanel, Baranski, always a delight, brings out the comic aspects of the shrewish Charlotte. Petrie does let some of the locals be too yokel but inspires his principals to play off one another with ease.
Mooseport was filmed principally in and around Toronto, in particular Port Perry, which has a classic Victorian main street and easily passes for a New England town. A handsome production, “Welcome to Mooseport” is a most welcome treat.
*
‘Welcome to Mooseport’
MPAA rating: PG-13 for some brief sexual comments and nudity.
Times guidelines: Suitable family fare.
Gene Hackman...Monroe Cole
Ray Romano...Handy Harrison
Marcia Gay Harden...Grace
Sutherland
Maura Tierney...Sally Mannis
Christine Baranski ...Charlotte Cole
A 20th Century Fox presentation in association with Mediastream IV of an Intermedia production. Director Donald Petrie. Producers Tom Schulman, Basil Iwanyk. Executive producers Rory Rosegarten, David Coatsworth, Moritz Borman, Doug Richardson. Screenplay by Tom Schulman. Cinematographer Victor Hammer. Editor Debra Neil-Fisher. Music John Debney. Costumes Vicki Graef. Production designer David Chapman. Art director Michael Shocrylas. Set decorator Gordon Sim. Running time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.
In general release.