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Finestkind was directed and written by Brian Helgeland and stars Ben Foster, Toby Wallace, Jenna Ortega, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Aaron Stanford, Scotty Tovar, Lolita Davidovich, Clayne Crawford, Tim Daly, and Tommy Lee Jones. It’s about two half-brothers whose reunion is complicated by near-death experiences, familial woes, and the Boston mob.

The Plot: By his own admission, Helgeland has wanted to make this story for over 30 years. It’s packed to the brim with asides and structure, but the narrative within the entirely competent storytelling measures isn’t as insightful as it might’ve been, nor is it confident in the journey.

College kid Charlie (Wallace) is returning to his home in New Bedford, Massachusetts, hoping to reconnect with his half-brother Tom (Foster) by working alongside him as a fisherman onboard his boat, Harmony. The movie wastes no time getting watery, as within a few minutes, Charlie is fishing with Tom and meeting his crew – Costa (Cordova), Skeemo (Stanford), and Nunes (Tovar). Just as quickly, Harmony explodes and puts the men out of a job. It’s a clunky and transparent effort from Helgeland to force the men into a tough position, but it’s worth it for the middle section of Finestkind, which is its most satisfying.

After hearing about the failed excursion, parental figures enter the picture, starting with Ray (Jones), Tom’s father, who gives him his own boat, the eponymous Finestkind, while he deals with medical problems; this gift doesn’t sit well with the men’s mother Donna (Davidovich), nor with Charlie’s father, Gary (Daly), opening a subplot for the movie going forward as the men get back to work. Said work is illegal dredging in Canadian space, which brings its own problems, leading to confrontations with mobster Pete (Crawford), creating a destination for the movie. A lot happens throughout the runtime, including a romantic subplot with Mabel (Ortega) for Charlie, but it’s a surprisingly balanced presentation.

Parts of Finestkind are disparate and add little, such as the romance, and the conclusion is rather bland, but there’s an interesting core to the plot. It pulls in different directions, but that’s the point, and it fares well.

The Characters: While there’s two thirds of an above average plot, there aren’t any remarkable personalities within it. All of the primary characters are composed of cliches, and the secondary ones aren’t around enough to be considered developed at all.

Charlie has a prime opportunity for a white-collar life after being accepted into law school, and he’s going to take it, but wants to detour for the summer. He’s a bit naive and rebellious, maybe trying to echo his brother, which might’ve been grating if handled improperly, but the effort he puts into making himself belong wherever he sees fit makes his curiosity believable, if not memorable. Tom is similarly familiar, as Finestkind makes him into a typically sullen figure equipped with a tough profession, failed romance, and estranged family. His volatility makes sense, but the softness beneath it all is what keeps him watchable.

Each of the parental figures make occasional appearances, but they’re as bland as can be. Donna just wants her boys to be safe, no matter which path they choose. Some time is spent explaining why she divorced Ray, but she still comes off as a generic mother character. On the other side, Gary is an uptight lawyer who shows disdain for Tom, and tough love for Charlie, but there’s no time given to the former relationship. Ray’s illness pushes him into an interesting position, but the character himself is another callous man with a heart of gold that informs Tom’s personality but doesn’t stand on his own.

Mabel adds less to the feature, only serving to get Charlie into more trouble than the movie needs to be effective, remaining an inconsistent presence throughout. She’s a drug dealer, but Pete fills the same role with more logic, leaving her redundant. It’s thanks to the good performances (sans Ortega, who’s out of her league, and Crawford who overacts like crazy) that these characters’ motives and personalities are somewhat engaging, as the script doesn’t provide its share of the deal.

The Drama: Much of Finestkind is inspired by the director/writer’s early life, which explains why the interpersonal and situational drama excels even when the fictional characters don’t. As a slice of life, there’s perspective to be gained.

Observing hard work in a remote setting is easily the movie’s high point. Although the Harmony’s sinking is glossed over, some time is spent with the men as they celebrate survival at a bar and eagerly prepare to get back to work. Said work is shown as an easygoing experience on a personal level, allowing the men to horse around and enjoy peace while still going through the physical hardship of their labor. Earnestness is the biggest asset, with small pleasures such as listening to whale noises noted during the trip adding flavor to the proceedings.

Business-oriented drama is decent, but not enlightening or surprising. An argument between Tom and the owner of Harmony is present and shows the company as cheapskates, but that’s not a groundbreaking revelation. Neither is the treatment of nautical border crossers, who get fined a massive $100k and their vessels impounded, which presents a positive side to working for a company, but it gets Finestkind to a place of legitimate, if unimaginative, pressure.

When dealing with the ramifications of their choices on the water, there’s a lot to like, but when the men return to land, melodrama soon overtakes insight. Tom and Charlie learn about Ray’s cancer diagnosis and yearn to fix their mistake. For some reason it’s not enough to have these characters want to do that on their own, and Helgeland provides soupy adages and clunky confrontations for the rest of the runtime. Still, the first 70 minutes brings out some diverting family drama and nautical observations dredged from a writer’s heart.

The Technics: Helgeland has always been a better writer than director, and that continues to be the case for Finestkind, where taking on double duties seems to have caused the production elements to be middling at best.

Pacing isn’t fine, as the over two-hour runtime isn’t distributed in a way that makes sense. Both brothers are introduced to the audience, as are the crewmates, the Harmony sinks, and the men are rescued before the five-minute mark passes. Truncated conflicts litter the first act, and a better edit might’ve helped the movie, but the writing has its own problems. Several instances of trite dialogue are reused, and ill-fitting slang makes up half of Ortega’s character’s lines, whereas out of place demands make up the other.

Although the setting is sufficiently captured, that’s mostly due to the on-location shoot, and less from the direction and cinematography. Bland composition, static framing, and mood-less lighting threaten TV movie territory. Some more active scenes in the climax are also unwieldy, and the score by Carter Burwell opts to manipulate instead of accentuate. Helgeland should’ve picked one job and stuck to it.

Finestkind is far from Helgeland’s finest work, but it has an interesting plot and tons of good acting. Even if it’s perfunctory in many regards, it’s not without dramatic merit.

58/100