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On a Clear Day (2005)

tomatometer

66

Average Rating: 6.2/10
Reviews Counted: 65
Fresh: 43 | Rotten: 22

Another blue-collar inspirational feel-good British dramedy, On A Clear Day succeeds on the strength of lead actor Peter Mullan's performance and Gaby Dellal's competent direction.

57

Average Rating: 6.1/10
Critic Reviews: 23
Fresh: 13 | Rotten: 10

Another blue-collar inspirational feel-good British dramedy, On A Clear Day succeeds on the strength of lead actor Peter Mullan's performance and Gaby Dellal's competent direction.

audience

60

liked it
Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 12,108

My Rating

Movie Info

A middle-aged man gives himself the challenge of a lifetime in this comedy drama from the U.K. Frank (Peter Mullan) has spent most of his 55 years working the same job in the shipyards of Glasgow until he's fired after business tapers off and technology makes his position unnecessary. While Frank tries to put on a brave face, he has no idea of what to do next or what sort of work he should find. Frank's embarrassment gets much worse when he applies for unemployment benefits, only to discover his

PG-13, 1 hr. 39 min.

Drama, Comedy

Alex Rose

Jul 11, 2006

$90.7k

Focus Features

Cast

All Critics (67) | Top Critics (23) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (23) | DVD (6)

The recycled spectacle of yet another downsized U.K. working-class type being reduced to an act of feel-good against-all-odds crowd-pleasing redemption.

May 5, 2006 Full Review Source: Toronto Star | Comment
Toronto Star
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The wonder here, if not the redemption, is that so many toil so hard to make this saccharine stuff palatable.

May 5, 2006 Full Review Source: Globe and Mail | Comment
Globe and Mail
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... despite its familiarity, it works, mostly on the strength of a fine performance by the Scottish actor Peter Mullan.

April 28, 2006 Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | Comment
Detroit Free Press
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Clear Day isn't terribly engaging.

April 21, 2006 Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | Comment
San Francisco Chronicle
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A lesser film, kindhearted, a wee bit weepy and a wee bit trite.

April 14, 2006 Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | Comment
Houston Chronicle
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Nothing in On a Clear Day is especially compelling. The movie doesn't dig deep enough.

April 14, 2006 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | Comment
Chicago Sun-Times
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A satisfying 92 minutes.

March 1, 2007 Full Review Source: Film Journal International | Comment
Film Journal International

There is much warmth and reconciliation in the final act, indicative of the movie's goodheartedness.

July 26, 2006 Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | Comment
EricDSnider.com

There's an audience for this sort of mush, but don't count me in the mix.

June 3, 2006 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | Comment
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

On a Clear Day isn't so much a bad film as it is a thoroughly familiar and unnecessary one.

June 3, 2006 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | Comment
eFilmCritic.com

One thing that sets On a Clear Day apart from other, like-minded films -- besides its spectacular Scottish location footage -- is the first-rate cast.

June 2, 2006 Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | Comment
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Unlike my colleagues, I wiped my eyes instead of rolling them, and I'm hoping you will too. Worth seeing indeed.

May 15, 2006 Full Review Source: Sympatico.ca | Comment

Flawed by moments of sitcom humour, On A Clear Day still manages to tell an engaging story about men, work and friendship.

May 5, 2006 Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | Comment
Jam! Movies

Fans of Mullan's more intense work will find this soft and all-too maudlin.

April 21, 2006 Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | Comment
Combustible Celluloid

The movie reaches for an emotional climax that is simply beyond the filmmakers' grasp.

April 14, 2006 Full Review Source: Seattle Times | Comment
Seattle Times

The social, economic and personal stresses don't seem very surely addressed by the big swim.

April 14, 2006 Full Review Source: San Diego Union-Tribune | Comment
San Diego Union-Tribune

Mullan makes the journey more than worthwhile, but don't go in expecting profundity.

April 14, 2006 Full Review Source: Oregonian | Comment
Oregonian
More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for On a Clear Day

This film should have continued with the bleakness that it displayed in the first 5 minutes because it soon descended into stupid comedy which, inevitably, turns it into a 'This year?s Full Monty' film. I thought the direction was very good. The mood in the first few scenes made me expect a gritty drama, it was very

October 2, 2009
SirPant

Super Reviewer

Laid off Glasgow dock worker tries to find some meaning to his life by swimming the English channel. It's a fairly light, British chum drama that will comfortably fill a spare hour and a half. I found the subplot a rather vague, unnecessary distraction and not all the acting was first class.

April 22, 2009
RossCollinsUK

Super Reviewer

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Foreign Titles

  • Une Belle journée (FR)
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