Perhaps, deep in the vast ocean, Tom and Charlie can fish up meaning.
Tom’s a struggling fisherman—and not only in the financial realm. He’s grappling with the emptiness he feels in his life, too. Meanwhile, the scatterbrained Charlie, pressured into Boston University’s law school by his father, isn’t so sure his life is going the way he wants, either.
That’s why Charlie’s approached his stepbrother, Tom, hoping that maybe the fisherman has room for one more crew member on his boat. He hopes that somehow, the ocean will offer up more than sea creatures for his future.
Turns out, Charlie loves fishing, and he goes back again and again. And the two of them start thinking that maybe life on the open ocean isn’t so bad.
That’s until they get caught by the Canadian Coast Guard fishing in Canadian waters—a crime for any United States fisherman. The boat’s impounded until they pay a $100,000 fine. And to make matters worse, the boat they were using was Ray’s, Tom’s father, who is dying of cancer. It’s Ray’s pride and joy, and Tom can’t handle thinking that losing his father’s boat is how he’ll say goodbye.
But how can the two possibly come up with $100,000 to pay the fine?
Charlie has an idea. He reaches out to his girlfriend, Mabel, asking if she could set Tom’s crew up with a job: a one-time gig that’ll get them the full amount of money in mere days. No, it’s not transporting fish. It’s transporting heroin.
Mabel’s background as a drug dealer threatens to pull her back into that lifestyle. However, she wants to “be her own hero” and to escape that trajectory, and she’s hoping to go to community college to make something of herself.
Both Tom and Charlie have issues with their fathers. While these issues aren’t fully fleshed out or resolved in the film, we do see some degree of reconciliation for both of the brothers with their dads.
Charlie and Tom, both struggling for purpose in their own ways, find some comfort in the brotherhood they share. The two find that working with one another makes them happy.
Someone puts his life at risk to protect another person.
At a party, we see a statue of Mary in a kiddie pool. After surviving a sinking boat, one character says, “Hallelujah, we have risen!” A cross hangs on one man’s wall.
A man makes a joke about chakras.
Charlie flashes his rear onscreen. Charlie and Mabel passionately kiss a couple times, and they’re seen in their underwear once after an apparent night of passion. Mabel makes a reference to arousal, and Charlie kisses her stomach. A man talks about writing instructions on a woman’s underwear.
A few men are shot and killed with quick sprays of blood, and another man is shot in the shoulder. A woman appears with a deep bruise on her face after having been severely beaten offscreen. Someone is smacked in the head with a gun, and it splits his head, causing him to bleed. A man is hit in the crotch. A man is grabbed by his throat and slammed against a wall, while another man pours fish-smelling ice into his car. Reckless driving nearly causes a couple car crashes, and a man is almost struck. A man holds a pregnant woman hostage as she begins to go into labor.
The f-word is used nearly 135 times, and five of those are preceded by “mother.” The s-word is heard more than 30 times. We also hear crude references to the male and female anatomy. “H—,” “d–n,” “b–ch,” “p-ss” and “b–tard” are all used, too. God’s name is taken in vain nearly 20 times, and four of those instances are conjoined with “d–n.” Jesus’ name is used in vain 12 times. We see a crude hand gesture.
In order to get $100,000 quickly, the crew decides to transport heroin in a one-time deal. But when the drugs are stolen, they end up in life-threatening trouble.
We see a man who’s used heroin. Mabel’s mother prepares pills for use as illicit drugs. She also delivers some drugs to a man.
People drink wine, beer and other alcohol. Charlie works a keg at a party. A couple people talk about getting intoxicated.
Tom urinates, though nothing can be seen. Someone vomits.
The fishing crew knowingly sails into off-limits waters.
Watching Finestkind can be a bit like fishing on a slow day: You spend the first half sitting with little fruit for your efforts, only to maybe get a bite after an hour has passed.
Yes, the first half of Finestkind is firmly rooted in the “introduction” phase of storytelling. The “rising action” phase doesn’t appear until we get an hour into the viewing. And that makes the movie feel quite slow for one that pegs itself as a “crime thriller.”
But when we get to that second half, there are some Plugged In issues we’ll need to deal with. People are shot and killed. Heroin plays a key part in the story. And, while not exclusive to the latter half of the film, harsh profanity is as plentiful as the fish in the sea.
We’re told that finestkind is one of those words that can mean whatever you want it to mean, depending on how you use it. That makes Finestkind aptly named—and to be clear, I’m not saying that in a positive light.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
