The Shipping News - R\nStarring: Kevin Spacey, Julianne Moore\nDirected by: Lasse Hallström\nShowing: Showplace East 11\nGet to the theater early, skip the popcorn and make sure you're in your seat when the opening credits start to roll. Whatever causes you to get to the theater late, make sure it doesn't happen when going to see "The Shipping News" starring Kevin Spacey because the first 15 minutes have more storyline than any other drama has had in a long time. A birth, a couple of deaths, the kidnapping and sale of the child to the black-market and the theft of cremation ash that was once Spacey's father all happen in the first few minutes of this very interesting new film from director Lasse Hallström.\nSpacey stars as the lovable, but pathetic, Quoyle, which is in fact his last name, but there is never a mention of a first. After realizing how horrible and "boring" life his life has been, and after his wife and parents die, he decides to move back to his family's homeland of Newfoundland with his aunt (Judi Dench). What Quoyle doesn't know is that his family name is famous and there is a disturbing legacy left back at the cold waters of this Canadian port.\nQuoyle becomes a journalist and the plot is driven by the exposition of all the characters he meets. Everyone has an unsettling story about their pasts, and each have an even more troubling story about the Quoyle family. Spacey plays the part well, and continues to make us love his loser characters, which have become a great art for him. Julianne Moore co-stars as the Newfoundlander who befriends Quoyle and his daughter. Moore's slight accent and undying love for her mentally handicapped child just proves that she is indeed one of the best actresses of this generation.\nThe film went through a number of changes with cast members and re-writes before the film ever hit the screen, but was released just in time to get some heads turning before March. Spacey signed on to the role a few days after his acceptance speech for his Oscar from "American Beauty" and he might just have to decide what his next film will be at the after-party this year.\n
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