Product Details

• Actors: Gene Hackman, Ray Romano, Maura Tierney, Marcia Gay Harden, Christine Baranski
• Directors: Donald Petrie
• Writers: Doug Richardson, Tom Schulman
• Producers: Basil Iwanyk, David Coatsworth, David Holden, Doug Richardson, Marc Frydman
• Format: Anamorphic, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), Spanish (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish
• Dubbed: French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: 20th Century Fox
• DVD Release Date: May 25, 2004
• Run Time: 110 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00005JMWJ
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #108,835 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• Learn more about "Welcome To Mooseport (Widescreen Edition)" on IMDb

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Welcome to Mooseport is such a blandly likable comedy that your grandmother could watch it and wish for a little sex and violence to keep her awake. Perhaps the phenomenal popularity of TV's Everybody Loves Raymond made Ray Romano proceed too cautiously in selecting this small-town comedy as his film debut; without a live audience and an endless supply of punchy one-liners at his disposal, his domestic everyman persona seems a bit lost, ill-defined and uncertain how to respond when a former U.S. President (Gene Hackman) (1) moves to the quiet, jovial Maine burg of Mooseport, where Romano's the beloved plumber and hardware store proprietor; (2) proceeds to make moves on Ray's long-time girlfriend (Maura Tierney, from ER); and (3) runs against our ol' pal Ray in Mooseport's homespun mayoral election. Hackman's got some stellar support from Marcia Gay Harden and Rip Torn (and, to a lesser degree, Fred Savage), and Tierney's a pleasure as always, but director Donald Petrie (Miss Congeniality) can't spin gold from straw; Tom Schulman's screenplay aims to please everyone, draining the energy from what might, in other hands, have been a deliciously devious premise. There's such a thing as being "niced" to death, and Welcome to Mooseport is proof. --Jeff Shannon

Product Description

Cast your ballot for big laughs when Gene Hackman and Ray Romano find themselves in a hilariously heated race for mayor of Mooseport, Maine. A local plumber (Romano) is plunged into the national spotlight when he takes on the former President of the United States (Hackman), who can't believe he's running against the man installing his toilets! To make matters worse, the ex-prez is trying to steal the election -- and the affection of the handyman's girlfriend (Maura Tierney). Whoever wins, one thing's for sure: this town isn't small enough for the both of them!

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Ray, you ruined this movie. December 29, 2004

By J. Kenary

Format:DVD

Simply put, Mooseport is a bad movie. Far fetched, not funny, slow-paced and boring. A waste of 90 minutes of my life. This is why this movie went straight from the theaters to DVD and HBO. Ray Romano's poor acting (as "Handy" the plumber) in particular ruined the movie. Romano was dull, lifeless and easy to root against. If it was not for Gene Hackman, who as usual, does a great job, I would have quit after the first 30 minutes. If you want to check this out, I would wait until the DVD hits the 5 dollar rack at your local Wal-mart/Target.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars More Like, "Welcome to DULLSVILLE" January 3, 2005

By Yendor

Format:DVD

This is what one might call a "work movie" or an excercise in filmmaking. WELCOME TO MOOSEPORT has an impressive cast from Ray Romano, Gene Hackman, Marcia Gay Harden, Maura Tierney, Rip Torn, and Fred Savage. However, the plot is predictable and the characters are one-dimensional. Hackman plays ex-President of the United States, Monroe Cole. He has retired to Mooseport, Maine and is asked by the local citizenry to run for a vacated Mayor's position. Then, he finds himself running against the local hardware store/plumber owner Handy Harrison played by Ray Romano. Then, the writers throw in a lame side-plot of Cole trying to win the heart of Handy's fiance (Tierney). Handy/Romano is so likeable and low-key in the movie that he gets lost amongst the townspeople and his co-workers at his hardware store during most of the movie. Hackman as ex-President Cole has the proverbial phoned-in performance. The real stand-out comedic performance is that of Fred Savage (tv's THE WONDER YEARS) as Coles's aid, Bullard. The most striking thing about the film is that there is no bite in the script and the dialogue is very bland as is the interaction of the characters. The production values and location shots are great in capturing the small town atmosphere, but that's all. Overall, a comedy/romance film that is just a vehicle to cash in on Ray Romano's tv persona. Therefore, it plays like a made-for-tv movie, it plays it too safe, and thus is a very forgettable tax write-off 20th Century Fox.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Welcome to Mooseport (2004) May 30, 2004

By The Tweeder

Format:DVD

Director: Donald Petrie
Cast: Gene Hackman, Ray Romano, Marcia Gay Harden, Maura Tierney, Christine Baranski, Fred Savage, Rip Torn.
Running Time: 115 minutes.
Rated PG-13 for some language and gross elderly nudity (just an old man's behind).

"Welcome to Mooseport" has enough charm and some quirky moments to make those who are fans of Ray Romano's "Everybody Loves Raymond" television show giggle somewhat, but ultimately it is caught trying to be a comedy that does not have much scripted humor and relies too much on Romano to get laughs just because of his fame. Gene Hackman is well-casted as Monroe "Eagle" Cole, one of the most famed former Presidents of the United States of America, who has moved to the small Maine town of Mooseport due to a sloppy divorce that left him without his Baltimore home. Ray Romano stars as Handy Harrison (who happens to be a handy man-go figure), a goofball that knows the ins-and-outs of the town, but does not know when to commit to his long-time girlfriend Sally (Maura Tierney).

When Mooseport's mayor suddenly passes away, "Eagle" Cole is asked to take on the assignment. He accepts, but only because of the good public press he would receive. Handy Harrison names himself a candidate as well when Cole asks Sally out for a date, leading both men into a sequence of idiosyncratic campaign stunts that involve televised mayoral debates (?) and golf matches to win over women. "Welcome to Mooseport" is a film that is enjoyable for younger teenagers and adults that grew up watching Hackman during his prime, but ultimately it is an unfunny attempt to draw on the success of "Everybody Loves Raymond".... Romano is actually the weaker of the two lead stars, either because he was not given the ability to shine in a somewhat limited role, or because in reality his television show is a triumph because of his overwhelmingly talented supporting cast in the first place. An average film and that is being generous. Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Trite! August 21, 2004

By C Brunner

Format:DVD

The premise is juvenile, the story line is absurd, and the characters make no sense. Any atempt at humor falls flat. A naked man jogging thorugh town every morning, an almost deaf man proposing the president but voting for the protagonist, an ex-wife who shows up out of the blue, a love-starved presidential assistant, saccharine wholsomeness . . . a waste of 2 hours.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars A LIMP OVERDRAWN SITCOM THAT'S JUST NOT FUNNY June 20, 2004

By Shashank Tripathi VINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

The comic firepower of "Welcome to Mooseport" sounds more like a whimper than a bang, thanks in no small measure to an instantly forgettable performance by the eternally nagging Romano. The girl-friend squabble (how novel) between Gene Hackman and Romano's characters is too dragged out and unbelievably phony. A faulty sitcom stretched into nearly two excruciating hours, almost, but that doesn't really matter as every twist and turn can be seen from a mile away. Which is sad because most of the cast has done quite well elsewhere and was just tragically frittered away on this wet noodle.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars How did this poor excuse for a movie get made?!? May 26, 2004

By Jimmy Hall

Format:DVD

On Tuesdays me and my friends always rent or buy the new DVD releases that come out. THANK THE LORD we rented this one. I love Gene Hackman, but even ol' Gene couldn't save this one. Definitely one of the worse rentals I have seen this year. I would reccomend you stay away from Mooseport!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars This one flew under the radar for a reason... July 28, 2010

By Andrew Ellington VINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

I happened to catch this snoozefest while on my way back home from Alaska, cooped up on a plane with little to do except watch a barely likable film like this one. I mean, it is far from what I was expecting. I'm a pretty big fan of Ray Romano's work on `Everybody Loves Raymond' and so I was expecting a lot from him, comedically (a word I made up for the flow of this review), and I always expect a lot from Gene Hackman, who is one of the greatest actors to ever grace the world of film. Add to the mix the always delightfully grounded Miss Harden and the beautiful Maura Tierney (give her more work, please) and you have high expectations from yours truly. Instead I got a barely lukewarm `family flick' with no spice and no real charm either. In fact, the laughs are barely audible (my biggest laugh came at the idea of Ray Romano being considered `eye candy') and the very clichéd concept of the film itself is begging for something to add at least some texture to the movie. It is a complete disaster, which is sad considering the talent involved. It's not that `Welcome to Dullsville...err...Mooseport' is a bad film, it's just that it really isn't much of anything. It is a forgettable slice of tofu pie.