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Rare Birds

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Rare Birds

R

Released Mar 1, 2002

1h 44m

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

54%

Tomatometer

13 Reviews

69%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

Dave is ready to call it quits on his marriage and his restaurant. His wife has left him and the restaurant, The Auk, has never really taken off. Desperate, Dave tries to consume the rare delights of his restaurant before they are repossessed. All seems lost until Dave's neighbor, Phonse (Andy Jones), proposes a mad scheme to save The Auk. They will announce the presence, in the vicinity of the restaurant, of an extremely rare duck, attracting bird watchers the world over.

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Whimsical and touching.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 3, 2003

Full Review

Allison Benedikt

Chicago Tribune

Rendered bland and frustrating by its endless attempts to make the odd odder.

Rated: 1.5/4

Oct 2, 2003

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Ty Burr

Boston Globe

The movie keeps coming back to the achingly unfunny Phonce and his several silly subplots.

Rated: 2/4

Oct 4, 2002

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Comes up fowl.

Mar 9, 2019

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 2/5

Jul 22, 2005

Full Review

Chris Hewitt

St. Paul Pioneer Press

Even if you don't know a wren from a grackle, there are pleasures here.

Rated: 3/4

May 23, 2003

Full Review

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Audience Member

I'm not a fan of the rom-com genre, but the wry humor that pervades this picture just tickles my fancy. Oh, and Molly Parker.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Cute and charming film with quirky characters and small-town magic. As usual, the introduction of drugs to the story is unnecessary and hurts the movie.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

Full Review

Frances H

Cute, funny and warmly wacky little Canadian flick. Andy Jones is outstanding as he remarks over and over,"Plan B, Dave!" He's hilarious! And the coastal scenery is to die for!

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/05/13

Full Review

Audience Member

Cute little film set in a sleepy Newfoundland town that is set upon by outsiders all in searchof an elusive bird. Touching with good character interaction.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I was very happily surprised. I adored it. Charming.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Pointy birds, oh pointy pointy

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

Full Review

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Sturla Gunnarsson

Director

William Hurt

Dave Purcell

Andy Jones

Phonse

Molly Parker

Alice

Vicky Hynes

Deb

Greg Malone

Buster Bartlett

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Synopsis

Dave is ready to call it quits on his marriage and his restaurant. His wife has left him and the restaurant, The Auk, has never really taken off. Desperate, Dave tries to consume the rare delights of his restaurant before they are repossessed. All seems lost until Dave's neighbor, Phonse (Andy Jones), proposes a mad scheme to save The Auk. They will announce the presence, in the vicinity of the restaurant, of an extremely rare duck, attracting bird watchers the world over.

Director: Sturla Gunnarsson
Screenwriter: Edward Riche
Distributor: Studio Home Entertainment, Shadow Distribution, Lionsgate Films, Nexo, Kinowelt Home Entertainment [de]
Production Co: Pope Productions, Rare Productions Ltd. [ca], Big Pictures Entertainment
Rating: R (Language|Drug Use)
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 1, 2002, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 23, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $17.8K
Runtime: 1h 44m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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