movie review mending the line

Mending the Line

“There’s more great literature written about fly fishing than any other sport.”

This line comes early on in “Mending the Line,” and it really is so true! Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It is probably the most famous example, but there are libraries more. Why this might be is an interesting question, and why fly fishing inspires such passionate advocates is another. “Mending the Line,” sensitively directed by Joshua Caldwell and written by Stephen Camelio , tells the story of two men, one old ( Brian Cox ), and one young ( Sinqua Walls ), who are veterans of two different wars. They find healing for their combat traumas, physical and emotional, in fly fishing and in their unlikely friendship.

“Mending the Line” opens in Afghanistan, as a group of Marines, celebrating their final day of deployment, are sent out for one last patrol by their leader, Colter (Walls). Things go haywire. Many of the men under his command, including good friends, are killed, and Colter is severely injured. Back home, haunted by guilt and self-medicating with alcohol, he lands in a veteran rehab facility in Montana. It seems like a good facility, with treatments tailored to the specific person’s issues. Dr. Burke ( Patricia Heaton ) recognizes Colter’s impatience to be healed, immediately, so he can get deployed again, but tries to get him to manage his expectations. He doesn’t take well to the group therapy, lashing out at the counselor, who never served. Colter is a mess.

Ike (Cox), on the other hand, is decades past his own war but still makes periodic visits to the facility, especially after he blacks out while fly fishing by himself. Ike is a crotchety isolated guy, a former Marine, whose sole respite from his mental trouble is when he’s out on the river. Dr. Burke sets up Ike and Colter: Ike will teach Colter the ins and outs of fly fishing. They spend a lot of time at the local bait & tackle shop, run by Ike’s old friend Harrison ( Wes Studi ). Ike and Harrison know each other very well, and their dynamic is prickly, humorous, and familiar. Colter’s training has its bumps, but eventually, he’s out in the river, trying it for himself. (There’s a funny moment where Ike upbraids Colter for calling the fishing rod a “pole,” echoing a sentiment in A River Runs Through It : “Always it was to be called a rod. If someone called it a pole, my father looked at him as a sergeant in the United States Marines would look at a recruit who had just called a rifle a gun.”)

The third central character is Lucy ( Perry Mattfeld ), a librarian who volunteers at the rehab facility, reading to the veterans. Lucy is a troubled woman, anxious and distracted. Her back story isn’t revealed until later, but she clearly is haunted by something. She’s stuck, just like Ike and Colter. When Ike sends Colter to the library to get some books about fly fishing, Lucy gives him The Sun Also Rises (forgetting that one of the main characters has been rendered impotent from a war injury). There may be a little spark of romantic interest between Lucy and Colter, but it’s on the slowest burns.

The fly-fishing sequences are beautiful, and the Montana scenery is stunning. Bill Brown’s score is of the old-fashioned sweeping kind, and its use is heavy-handed, insisting on the scene’s emotion as opposed to supporting it. Watching Colter standing in the river, a big smile on his face when he casts out his line correctly, carries its own weight without orchestral underlining. Each character gets a lengthy monologue, where they tell their story and sum up their emotions. The cranky old-coot humor between Studi and Cox is a welcome break, and there could have been more of it. Ike, Colter, and Lucy are complex people struggling with entrenched problems which can’t be wished away. They do their best to survive and sometimes fail to rise above. This dynamic saves the film from sentimentality and some of its blunter tendencies towards self-conscious “inspiration.” Life is hard. You never heal completely. You just find ways to cope.

Fly fishing as therapy for PTSD is a “thing” now; its popularity among veterans growing—and research supports the anecdotal . Fly fishing clubs for veterans have sprouted up everywhere in the country. It’s very moving to see photos of all the real veterans fly fishing underneath the end credits. “Mending the Line” is the first film to explicitly address this new and innovative treatment, showing it as a potential therapy for those who suffer in silence. Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre’s 2019 film “ The Mustang ” showed a prison program where convicts work with wild mustangs as therapy to manage the uncontrollable rage that has ruined their lives. “The Mustang” was a little bit harder-hitting than “Mending the Line,” but, for the most part, “Mending the Line” conveys its message well. It could point people who are hurting in a new and surprising direction, maybe even leading to a way out.

Now playing in theaters. 

Sheila O'Malley

Sheila O’Malley received a BFA in Theatre from the University of Rhode Island and a Master’s in Acting from the Actors Studio MFA Program. Read her answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

• Brian Cox as Ike Fletcher
• Sinqua Walls as Colter
• Perry Mattfeld as Lucy
• Patricia Heaton as Dr. Burke
• Wes Studi as Harrison
• Irene Bedard as Mrs. Redcloud
• Julian Works as Ram
• Chris Galust as Kovacs

Cinematographer

• Joshua Caldwell
• Stephen Camelio
• Will Torbett

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Mending the Line Reviews

This is a heart-touching film about veterans helping veterans.

Full Review | Original Score: 3 stars | May 20, 2024

Over and over, the decision to repeatedly linger in the moment feels like it’s being made out of caution rather than actual effectiveness.

Full Review | Mar 28, 2024

These two men [Brian Cox & Sinqua Walls] from different generations and different backgrounds still develop a warm friendship that really centers the film. The story of fly-fishing and trout-fishing plays as beautiful metaphor for life.

Full Review | Original Score: 8.5/10 | Jul 21, 2023

It may be formulaic and slow, but this mentor-student drama is rarely dull thanks to fine performances and languid pacing that lets us find the meditative rhythms of fly fishing itself.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 17, 2023

The drama captures the way two wounded warriors from opposite worlds can overcome trauma, find comfort in nature and, potentially, mend themselves.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Jun 16, 2023

The whole point of finding tranquility on a fly-fishing river is that one should learn to take that meditation into daily life. This is among the most important concepts that exist for humans. Which makes the movie worthwhile despite a saccharine score.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 14, 2023

Mending the Line brings us close to its broken-down veterans, delivering a sympathetic depiction that transcends politics.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jun 14, 2023

I couldn't have been more bored than if I were actually fishing.

Full Review | Original Score: C+ | Jun 14, 2023

Featuring strong performances and a solid cast that includes Sinqua Walls plus seasoned greats Brian Cox and Wes Studi, the heartwarming film examines the alienation and trauma many “wounded warriors” experience and their journey toward peace and purpose.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jun 10, 2023

Blandly well-intentioned fare...elevated to some extent by strong lead performances from Sinqua Walls and Brian Cox...who makes the decidedly calculating and predictable movie as watchable as it is.

Full Review | Original Score: C+ | Jun 10, 2023

[It] has a rote TV-movie look and a few bland and rambling passages. But it delivers a truth about those who have served, about the reality of the demons that can linger in them, that’s tough and moving.

Full Review | Jun 10, 2023

Quiet and genuine, the film's prescription for what ails you is applicable to a great many ailments, making it a movie well worth seeking out.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Jun 10, 2023

Audiences will know precisely what they are getting with "Mending the Line," but it is still a delightful watch.

Full Review | Original Score: 7/10 | Jun 9, 2023

There’s a poignant message about the unspoken bond between veterans and finding healing in unexpected places. However, amid its picturesque rivers and streams, the film overflows with heavy-handed sentimentality.

Full Review | Jun 9, 2023

The movie is worth a look for its lovely and magical fly-fishing sequences and stirring Big Sky vistas (shout out to cinematographer Eve Cohen), as well as its strong cast...

Full Review | Jun 8, 2023

The middling material is often elevated by the performances.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/4 | Jun 8, 2023

Mending the Line veers back and forth like bumper cars, from compelling dialogue exchanges to phony drama

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Jun 7, 2023

Through its setting and performances, “Mend the Line” has just enough going for it to recommend it.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jun 6, 2023

Contrived, preachy and paint-by-numbers, but anchored by the always-reliable, warm and charismatic Brian Cox.

Full Review | Jun 6, 2023

There’s not a lot to this picture...The pacing is a bit slack, as well... But the patience of the sport and the tranquility of the settings casts a spell, and it all comes together in modestly, honestly moving ways.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | May 24, 2023

‘Mending the Line’ Review: In a Moving Drama, Brian Cox and Sinqua Walls Are War Veterans Who Help Each Other Heal

The actors hit notes of truth in a film that seems to be about fly-fishing-as-therapy but cuts deeper.

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Cut to three months later. John has survived and is back in the U.S., where he has been sent to several rehab centers, starting with Walter Reed and, now, the V.A. Medical Center in Livingston, Montana. His physical injuries are healing — the scar tissue on his thighs from an I.E.D., the concussion he suffered. And the psychological injury? John, at a glance, looks taut and together, but he swigs from a half-pint of whiskey all day long, and we see his nightmares; they’re about the buddies he couldn’t save. As for his fury at the military bureaucracy, it’s intense enough to feel misplaced. He’s angry at the group therapy he’s assigned to do, angry at the trauma counselor who has never seen action, angry at the establishment that’s subjecting him to endless rounds of evaluation. All he wants is to go back into combat.

Ike, with his white hair and beard, his occasional blackouts at the river (he’s not supposed to be fishing alone), seems to be edging into a serene if precarious old age. But he’s angry, too. You can’t have a Brian Cox character without a residue of anger. It’s there in his squinty J’accuse! stare, in the cynicism just beneath the jolliness. At the V.A. center, Dr. Burke (Patricia Heaton) puts John and Ike together, figuring that fly fishing could do the younger man good by giving him the therapy he needs. For a while, it’s a boot-camp-as-“Karate Kid” situation, with Ike forcing John to do a lot of scutwork (not to mention homework, like researching the flies at the end of the lines and plucking a book or two out of the vast panoply of fly-fishing literature — John chooses “The Sun Also Rises.”)

But then the two men start to fish. John, after a short while, brings along Lucy (Perry Mattfeld), a local librarian and rehab-facility volunteer, who lost her own fiancé in combat. She learns to fish too. In recent years, fly fishing has become a popular form of therapy among veterans, and for a while “Mending the Line” encourages you to think that you’re watching the PTSD version of “A River Runs Through It.” The river idyll doesn’t last, though. John thinks he’s getting better; he’s primed to heed the call to rejoin the war. But the call never comes. Sinqua Walls, with his quiet, stoic, avid-eyed affability, makes John a paragon of service, to the point that we can’t help but admire his courage. Yet the movie is throwing us a curveball. Its point is that John can’t be an effective soldier if he’s too wounded inside.

Ike, who never fully recovered from his own wounds of anguish (we sense this because he’s got a son who’s estranged), understands all that. He’s got John’s number. And in the last part of the movie, he gives John the message he needs to hear, in words delivered by Cox as if they were life poetry from the soul. Laying in a hospital bed, Ike tells him, “In the book of every soldier’s life, the military is a chapter. It never leaves you. But [whispering] it’s not, not the whole story.” “Mending the Line,” directed by Joshua Caldwell from a script by Stephen Camelio, has a rote TV-movie look and a few bland and rambling passages. But it delivers a truth about those who have served, about the reality of the demons that can linger in them, that’s tough and moving. The film concludes with black-and-white photographs of real veterans fly fishing, a ritual that by the end we see more clearly as a baptism of restoration for those who gave everything.

Reviewed at Angelika Film Center, June 8, 2023. MPA Rating: R. Running time: 122 MIN.

• Production: A Blue Fox Entertainment release of an Artimage Entertainment, CKM Entertainment, August Point production, in association with Storm Castle Creative, Meydenbauer Entertainment, Whipporwill Productions. Producers: Kelly McKendry, Scott MacLeod, Carl Effenson, Stephen Camelio, Joshua Caldwell. Executive producers: Brian Cox, Sinqua Walls, Mark Comora, Arlene Comora, Adam Comora, David Comora, Meredith Blake, Barry Caldwell, Debra Caldwell, Mark Samuel McKendry, “Big Ben” Cravatt, Keith English, Richard MacLeod, Gail MacLeod, Robert Ogden Barnum, Rick Sasner, David Gendron, Ali Jazaveri, Kyle David Crosby, Roger Goff.
• Crew: Director: Joshua Caldwell. Screenplay: Stephen Camelio. Camera: Eve M. Cohen. Editor: Will Torbett. Music: Bill Brown.
• With: Director: Joshua Caldwell. Screenplay: Stephen Camelio. Camera: Eve M. Cohen. Editor: Will Torbett. Music: Bill Brown.

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Review: ‘Mending the Line’ casts a familiar but effective story about remedy and redemption

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From the post-Vietnam War classics “Coming Home,” “The Deer Hunter” and “Born on the Fourth of July,” to more contemporary films, including “The Hurt Locker,” “American Sniper” and “Thank You for Your Service,” there has been no shortage of movies involving veterans returning from battle plagued by such issues as post-traumatic stress disorder and survivor’s guilt.

The newest of these films, “Mending the Line,” directed by Joshua Caldwell, proves a touching and admirable, if overlong look at the topic that significantly echoes last year’s superior, Oscar-nominated entry, “Causeway.” How widely that Jennifer Lawrence-Brian Tyree Henry movie was seen may affect this PTSD drama’s viewing experience, though “Mending” distinguishes itself with its own fine lead performances, lived-in vibe and “A River Runs Through It”-style visual beauty.

Sinqua Walls, from the recent Amazon Prime thriller “Nanny” and Hulu’s “White Men Can’t Jump” remake, confirms his standing here as a solid, charismatic presence playing John Colter, a soldier who returns from Afghanistan to a fellow Marine’s Montana hometown to heal — both physically and emotionally — in a local Veterans Affairs hospital. But the firm and cautious Dr. Burke (a nice turn by Patricia Heaton) feels Colter has a long way to go before being approved for reenlistment, sending him down an angry path of pity and self-destruction.

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A longer-term patient of Dr. Burke’s, the grouchy, 70ish, Vietnam War vet, Ike Fletcher (Brian Cox, hot off the final season of “Succession” ), has his own raft of unresolved struggles that has led to alcoholism, isolation and a deep estrangement from his family. This ex-Marine’s sole pleasure in life, fly fishing, is threatened after one too many stream-side accidents force the doctor to tell Ike that he can no longer fish alone. Though the stubborn angler doesn’t take the news well, he recruits his old fishing buddy and fly-shop owner, Harrison (an enjoyable Wes Studi), to join him. But Harrison’s quickly sidelined by a foot injury.

In an attempt to solve two problems at once — and fully aware of the sport’s therapeutic powers — Dr. Burke orders the flailing Colter to pair up with Ike to teach him to fly fish. A war of wills and words ensues between the two tough, tortured men as they start their fragile journey. But, as with most on-screen odd couples, you know it’s just a matter of time before they find common ground. More than that, Ike and Colter end up forming an especially warm relationship that leads to a moving climactic payoff.

Then there’s Lucy (Perry Mattfeld), a onetime photographer who works in the town library and reads aloud to VA hospital patients. She’s a clearly haunted, detached soul, the reasons for which take a while to be revealed. Lucy eventually meets Colter when he comes to the library looking for books about fishing and a tentative friendship begins. But can Colter keep his demons at bay around her?

Although Lucy is a well-drawn character, her sadness and loss tip the film’s trauma scale and, at times, lend the picture a kind of airless quality. In addition, Lucy’s substantial screen time splits the story focus, causing her dynamic with Colter to narratively compete with his relationship with Ike. Not a terrible thing, but tricky to effectively balance.

In general, Stephen Camelio’s script, sensitive and convincing as it is, attempts to pack too much emotion, back story and metaphor into a relatively slender tale. The result is a two-hour film that would have benefited from a judicious trim, a quickened pace and less melodrama.

That said, the movie is worth a look for its lovely and magical fly-fishing sequences and stirring Big Sky vistas (shout out to cinematographer Eve Cohen), as well as its strong cast, authentic depictions, vital messaging and stirring excerpts from Steve Ramirez’s poetic, Texas-set fly-fishing book, “Casting Forward.”

As for the film’s title, it refers to the act of repositioning one’s fly line and leader on a moving current to best attract fish. But when it comes to this tale of remedy and redemption, “mending” is definitely the operative word.

'Mending the Line'

Rating: R, for language and some violent images Running time: 2 hours, 2 minutes Playing: Starts June 9 in general release

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Mending the Line Review: You May Just Get Hooked

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• Mending the Line is a solid study of PTSD and guilt with strong performances from Brian Cox, Sinqua Walls, Wes Studi, and others.
• Beautiful cinematography in Montana sets a warm and relaxing mood for the film.
• While a bit predictable, the film's deep moments and universal themes make it stand out from other melodramas. Its use of fly fishing, too, creates a great allegory.

It’s a bit of a surreal head-scratcher watching the first hour of director Joshua Caldwell’s Mending the Line , mostly because of Brian Cox. That’s not a bad thing at all, and undoubtedly, Cox’s presence works in this film’s favor. But the more you find yourself engaged in this endearing film, you realize several things: Sure, Cox is a sublime actor, but my oh my… it’s hard to shake off Logan Roy, the steely corporate giant Cox brought to life on HBO’s Succession , and a character that will go down as one of television’s finest. Cox is Cox here. Good all around, but that enormous shadow of Logan Roy covers him, especially because Succession’s finale aired just a few weeks ago.

That said, Mending the Line, a film about two unlikely military gents forced together to work things out — bring on the fly-fishing, folks! — somehow generates enough interest to keep you invested until its final scenes. Cox has a good acting partner here with Sinqua Walls. The actor has a commanding presence, and he turned heads in Friday Night Lights and The 15:17 to Paris. Walls will also be seen in T he Blackening. Familiar tropes aside, Mending the Line is worthy of our attention. Here’s why.

Brian Cox and Sinqua Walls Are Sublime

Mending the Line

Not available

• A good study of PTSD, guilt, and antisocial behavior with great performances.
• Visually beautiful and emotionally warm, the film has a pitch perfect and relaxing mood.
• It's a little too sappy and predictable, and doesn't give enough time to certain characters.

Mending the Line also stars Perry Mattfeld ( In the Dark, Shameless ), Patricia Heaton ( Carol’s Second Act ), and Wed Studi. Sinqua Walls plays Colter here, a determined if not fatigued Marine who is ready for one last battle in Afghanistan to end. That doesn’t go as planned, of course. That one last battle turns into a life-and-death situation and in the aftermath, Colter finds himself experiencing painstaking guilt and anger. Immediately, one may recall Jake Gyllenhaal experiencing similar in The Covenant . Other films have tackled this premise, too. What to do?

Related: The Best Movies About PTSD From the Vietnam War

In director Joshua Caldwell’s film , he leans deeply into screenwriter Stephen Camelio’s story, entices with stunning cinematography in Montana from Eve Cohen, and delivers the goods. Camelio wrote Colter as a tough-as-nails career Marine. Imagine the man’s frustration over being injured in battle then having his doctor (Heaton) send him over to another one of her patients, Ike, an elder military gent who is experiencing health concerns of his own. Neither Ike nor Colter want to be paired up, but for some reason their doctor believes Ike’s joy of fly-fishing will temper Colter’s PTSD and help ease Ike’s rattled nerves. Logan Roy fly-fishing? Well, it’s not quite like that, because Cox is an exceptional actor who can lose himself in any role.

Again, here we find a familiar set-up of two unlikely souls coming together who otherwise would have no business ever meeting. It’s dazzling nonetheless because Cox and Walls are so believable in their roles. As is Perry Mattfeld, who plays Lucy, somebody also grieving loss. Colter and Lucy generate a spark, however how that unravels is a refreshing surprise.

Gone Fly-Fishing in Montana

There’s so much happening behind the scenes of Mending the Line that should be noted. Screenwriter Stephen Camelio, who wrote for Field & Stream and EPSN The Magazine, happens to be a fly fisherman, as does Caldwell. Their knowledge of fly-fishing shows here and the scenes in which Ike and Colter hit the stream are some of the finest moments. Think of as a kind of sweet moving meditation of sorts. These images ground the film, balancing Ike and Colter’s personal dilemmas. ' Of course!', we might find ourselves saying to ourselves…. Maybe nature is the best remedy.

Related: Brian Cox's Best Performances, Ranked

Other things stand out in Mending in the Line. Sinqua Walls ( Nanny ) reportedly met and spoke with veterans whose real-life experiences mirrored Colter’s in the film—war, battle, injury, rehabilitation. You see that in Walls’ performance. Truth is, there’s something undoubtedly unique about Walls as an actor. I never felt as if I was watching him. It feels as if we’re experiencing Colter’s powerful journey.

Sobering facts come to mind while watching this film. Recent reports note that up to 22 veterans die by suicide every day. Some reports note that the suicide rate is more than 40. War, veterans, and PTSD all come to mind while watching Mending the Line. And the film’s title, of course, refers to both fly-fishing and psychological care. Camelio weaves all of this into the story with mindfulness and purpose, and the combination of Cox, Walls, and picturesque Montana, make Mending the Line a standout film experience.

Take note, too, of several truly deep moments in the film, particularly when Lucy is reading to Colter or Ike. There’s a sweetness there, with metaphors about life and moving through transition that should strike a universal chord. The filmmakers may cast a familiar creative line in this tale, but you can’t help but get hooked.

Mending the Line , from Blue Fox Entertainment, hit theaters June 9, 2023. It is now available to stream on Netflix through the link below:

Watch Mending the Line

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Mending the Line

A Marine wounded in Afghanistan is sent to a V.A. facility in Montana where he meets a Vietnam Vet who teaches him how to fly fish as a way of dealing with his emotional and physical trauma. A Marine wounded in Afghanistan is sent to a V.A. facility in Montana where he meets a Vietnam Vet who teaches him how to fly fish as a way of dealing with his emotional and physical trauma. A Marine wounded in Afghanistan is sent to a V.A. facility in Montana where he meets a Vietnam Vet who teaches him how to fly fish as a way of dealing with his emotional and physical trauma.

• Joshua Caldwell
• Stephen Camelio
• Patricia Heaton
• Perry Mattfeld
• 20 User reviews
• 14 Critic reviews
• 56 Metascore

Top cast 30

• Ike Fletcher

• Mrs. Redcloud

• McDowell (McD)

• Ryan Redcloud

• Older Veteran
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Did you know

• Trivia The film was produced in partnership with the U.S. Marine Corp Entertainment Liaison Office which offered the filmmakers the technical advisement, vehicles, equipment, Marines, and the opportunity to shoot at Camp Pendleton for free.
• Goofs When Ike is lying in the hospital bed and Lucy is reading to him, the monitor he is hooked up to shows no activity and it looks like he has flat-lined.
• Soundtracks Enough of You Written by Maggie McClure & Shane Henry Performed by The Imaginaries

User reviews 20

• heidi-359-71497
• Sep 27, 2023
• How long is Mending the Line? Powered by Alexa
• June 9, 2023 (United States)
• United States
• Umudu Yakalamak
• Paradise, Valley, Montana, USA
• ArtImage Entertainment
• August Point Productions
• CKM Entertainment
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• Jun 11, 2023

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 hours 2 minutes

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Mending the line.

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 3 Reviews
• Kids Say 0 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

Violence, language in tender, well-acted fly-fishing drama.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Mending the Line is a drama about an injured veteran (Sinqua Walls) who learns to fly-fish to help with his PTSD. Strong performances and a genuine appreciation for the sport make it worth seeing. There's a horrific wartime sequence that includes explosions, heavy shooting, and…

Why Age 15+?

Brief but horrific scenes of war in Afghanistan include explosions, lots of shoo

Strong, somewhat frequent language includes uses of "f--k," "s--t," "bulls--t,"

Main character drinks whiskey to self-medicate; he frequently gulps from a plast

Two characters begin a tentative romance, with some flirting, etc. Woman breaks

Mention of Sour Patch Kids candy. Bottle of Jack Daniels shown.

Any Positive Content?

People can help each other work through trauma and loss, and mentors can have a

Characters here are significantly flawed; most are dealing with pain and loss an

Main character Colter is a Black man (Sinqua Walls). Of the other four most-seen

Violence & Scariness

Brief but horrific scenes of war in Afghanistan include explosions, lots of shooting, and deaths. Character has nightmares reliving the incident in ever more horrific ways. Character attempts death by suicide by carrying a large rock into the lake (goes under water but pops up a moment later). Person blacks out and wakes up with blood trickle on forehead. Colter experiences fits of rage, slapping a chair across the room, storming out of therapy, slamming a keyboard, smashing bottles, punching at parked vehicles, etc. Large scars on legs. Characters panicking, arguing, yelling. Dialogue about someone killed in a car accident.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Strong, somewhat frequent language includes uses of "f--k," "s--t," "bulls--t," "son of a bitch," "bitch," "goddamn," "damn," "freak," "crap," "stupid." Middle-finger gestures. "Jesus" used as an exclamation.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Main character drinks whiskey to self-medicate; he frequently gulps from a plastic bottle and drinks several large shots in a bar. (A character tells him to "lay off the booze ... you reek.") Main character also takes prescription pills. Another character keeps a bottle of whiskey; an empty bottle is in the sink, and viewers learn that he dumped it out. Characters share drinks from a paper bag-wrapped bottle. Characters share beers. Cigar smoking.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Two characters begin a tentative romance, with some flirting, etc. Woman breaks out her "special moves," i.e., a sexy dance. Spoken story about a man losing his shorts and being naked. Dialogue about men "whose junk doesn't work."

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Positive messages.

People can help each other work through trauma and loss, and mentors can have a big impact. Movie has a sense of gratitude toward all the things that are provided naturally to make the sport of fishing happen -- not only the fish, but the water and the "perfect spot." A final message encourages people to take the tranquility they feel during fly-fishing, keep it with them at all times, and send it out into the world.

Positive Role Models

Characters here are significantly flawed; most are dealing with pain and loss and not always handling themselves in the best possible way. But as story progresses, characters become less selfish and begin giving more of themselves to help others. Strong mentor-pupil relationship, and the pupil passes down what he's learned to another.

Diverse Representations

Main character Colter is a Black man (Sinqua Walls). Of the other four most-seen characters, one is a White man, two are White women who are three-dimensional and have agency, and one is played by Wes Studi, who is Cherokee. Some veterans are played by actors with amputations who talk about their trauma in therapy. Other characters of color can be seen in smaller/background roles.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Parents need to know that Mending the Line is a drama about an injured veteran ( Sinqua Walls ) who learns to fly-fish to help with his PTSD. Strong performances and a genuine appreciation for the sport make it worth seeing. There's a horrific wartime sequence that includes explosions, heavy shooting, and characters being killed, as well as nightmares about this event. A character attempts death by suicide, and there are several outbursts of rage and violence, as well as shouting, panicking, arguing, etc. Language is very strong, with multiple uses of "f--k," "s--t," "bitch," "goddamn," and more. The main character drinks too much, gulping whiskey from a bottle throughout and having too much in a bar. Other characters have tenuous relationships with alcohol as well, and there's prescription pill use and cigar smoking. There's flirting and brief, mild, sex-related dialogue, as well as a bit of "sexy" dancing. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (3)

Based on 3 parent reviews

micheal jackosn

What's the story.

In MENDING THE LINE, U.S. Marine John Colter ( Sinqua Walls ) and his men are on the last day of their tour in Afghanistan when they're sent out on a final patrol. They're ambushed and slaughtered. An injured and scarred Colter winds up in a VA hospital in Montana, enraged and impatient to return to active duty. Meanwhile, ex-Marine Ike Fletcher ( Brian Cox ), who spends his days fly-fishing, has been suffering blackouts. Their doctor ( Patricia Heaton ) comes up with a solution: John can accompany Ike and be there to help if any blackouts occur, and Ike can teach John fly-fishing, which could help his PTSD. But sparks fly when the grumpy Ike and John meet for the first time. And things get more complicated when John meets grieving librarian Lucy ( Perry Mattfeld ).

Is It Any Good?

It may be formulaic and slow, but this mentor-student drama is rarely dull, thanks to fine performances and languid pacing that lets us find the meditative rhythms of fly-fishing itself. "More great literature has been written about fly-fishing than any other sport," Ike says at one point, and, watching Mending the Line , you're likely to believe him. The movie's fishing scenes are full of myth and metaphor, philosophy and psychology, as well as a general sense of centeredness and well-being. There's also gratitude: When Ike first catches a fish, he cradles it tenderly, lets it go, and whispers, "thank you."

The mentor-student stuff is pretty routine, including Ike's hard-as-nails approach (he makes John clean the stockroom before even letting him handle a fishing rod). There are also the expected weepy hospital scenes, a somewhat turgid music score, and a largely unsuccessful romantic subplot, but the actors, including the great Wes Studi as Ike's best friend (and the only one who can put up with Ike's orneriness), are fully game. They embrace the tragedy and beauty of their characters, and they manage to sell moments that might have otherwise fallen flat in lesser hands. Ultimately, Mending the Line teaches us a little about fly-fishing, but a lot more about being human.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how Mending the Line depicts drinking . Is John abusing alcohol with his self-medicating? Is drinking glamorized? Are there consequences? Why does that matter?

How is the mentor-student relationship depicted here? How is it similar to or different from your own relationships?

Did you notice positive diverse representations in the movie? What about any stereotypes ?

How are trauma and loss depicted? What are some of the positive ways characters tackle these things? What are some of the negative ways? What's the difference?

In the movie, how does fly-fishing teach gratitude ? How can this be applied to everyday life?

Movie Details

• In theaters : June 9, 2023
• On DVD or streaming : September 26, 2023
• Cast : Sinqua Walls , Brian Cox , Perry Mattfeld
• Director : Joshua Caldwell
• Inclusion Information : Black actors, Female actors, Latino actors
• Studio : Blue Fox Entertainment
• Genre : Drama
• Topics : Sports and Martial Arts
• Character Strengths : Gratitude
• Run time : 122 minutes
• MPAA rating : R
• MPAA explanation : language and some violent images
• Last updated : June 12, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

What to watch next.

A River Runs Through It

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Finding Forrester

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Movies that inspire gratitude, related topics.

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Mending the line.

Directed by Joshua Caldwell

For some, the path starts on the river.

A Marine wounded in Afghanistan returns to a VA hospital in Montana where he meets a Vietnam vet who teaches him fly fishing as a means to coming to terms with his physical and emotional trauma.

Brian Cox Sinqua Walls Perry Mattfeld Patricia Heaton Wes Studi Irene Bedard Julian Works Chris Galust Tristan Thompson Pressly Coker Michaela Sasner Melanie Rae Wendt Gabriel Clark Jenna Ciralli Scott McCauley Phaedra Nielson Josef Patterson Catherine Deriana Quenby Iandiorio

Director Director

Joshua Caldwell

Producers Producers

Joshua Caldwell Stephen Camelio

Writer Writer

Stephen Camelio

Executive Producer Exec. Producer

Robert Ogden Barnum

ArtImage Entertainment CKM Entertainment August Point Productions Storm Castle Creative Meydenbauer Entertainment Whippoorwill Productions

Primary Language

Spoken languages.

English Russian

Releases by Date

29 sep 2022, theatrical limited, 09 jun 2023, 26 sep 2023, 27 oct 2023, releases by country, puerto rico.

• Premiere Woodstock Film Festival
• Theatrical limited R

117 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Bryce Receveur ★★★½ 4

Made me realize how little of good fishing movies I have actually seen.

I'm going to need some recommendations if there are others out there.

Review by Sajawal ★★

Not gonna lie this felt like one long ass wounded warriors commercial- think my fav character might’ve been the dog because it had 0 dialogue

Review by DaveArt ★★★

At first I thought this was going to be one of those "Come to Jesus" movies. It is not and I'm alright with some of those Jesus movies. This is a War Vet movie that is full of cliche but that's alright too. It pulls at the heartstrings and the fishing scenes are nice but it's the acting that carried this movie. It's not an award grabber movie but for a Tuesday morning Netflix movie it was good.

Review by Bobby📚 Grant✏️ ★★★ 2

I started this evening heading to an advanced screening of The Flash . As my group rushed into the theater where the screening was being held (over an hour before the movie was scheduled to play) the last few seats were snagged right in front of our very souls. 

We were left with no choice but to search for a consolation movie to watch, looking at our phones through the tears in our eyes. We stumble on a movie called Mending the Line . A quick internet search leads me to see that Brian Cox is in it. “Oh yeah! That’s that movie where he’s in prison! I saw the trailer for it a couple times!” I exclaim. 

So, dispirited but enthusiastic…

Review by rowan ★★

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

second time i’ve seen brian cox die in the past 2 months

Review by Jesse Hassenger ★★ 1

I hope this doesn't sound indelicate but man this was boring as shit

Review by Andrew Da Gawd ★★

Great performances but damn this is so boring it’s too long and just slow melo drama bs

Review by Christian Ha ★★½

I mainly watched this to see Brian Cox in a role after Succession. Mending the Line resembles a spiritual film stripped of its religious elements, occasionally adopting the feel of an extended advertisement for disabled veterans. Stephen Camelio's script evokes some emotion but, at times, burdens the film's two-hour duration. The narrative delves deep but occasionally attempts to cram too much into the story. A more streamlined approach, emphasizing pacing and reducing melodrama, could have improved the movie. The film had the potential to really explore themes of healing and recovery deeply, but ended up just falling flat for me. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't good either.

Review by Late Movie Reviews ★★

A not so great script that has many good moments and a really good message weighed down hard by poor and amateur execution.

The film is low budget and it at times doesn’t feel like it and at times really feels like it. Some nice shots, some not nice shots. Some good acting, some bad acting. Some good music, some bad music. Sane goes for the sound design and editing. This film needed a better director. If all my production issues were fixed then the film still wouldn’t be perfect. The script is competent, but it still lacks a lot of substance and is pretty basic when it tries to pretend like it’s more than that. As a result, I feel the runtime was not justified at all. Mending the Line has good intentions and shows to me that the screenwriter has potential, but the film itself is ironically shallow.

Review by The Wingnut ★★★★★ 3

If the story in Mending The Line isn’t surprising, the film’s appeal is greatly! Can we for a moment talk about the performances, which are excellent all the way around, particularly those of Brian Cox, Wes Studi, Sinqua Walls and Perry Mattfeld. 

What I loved in the meat of the story was: Ike (Brian Cox) teaches Colter how to fish the way Mr. Miyagi teachers Daniel to fight in “The Karate Kid” — by making him do something else. Remember that strategy? Effective Daniel Son!

It’s really a joy to watch Studi as he brings a patient wisdom to his character. Mattfeld is also good, slowly peeling away Lucy’s (Perry Mattfeld’s character) icy outer layers and she had a lot of them.  Two thirds of the way into the movie  she and Colter grow increasingly closer.

You will cry watching this film 🎥 and that’s why I loved it!

Review by Buddfred Levi ★★★½

I appreciated the low key approach to a debilitating disease. Production values were simple and not overwhelming, direction was straightforward, actors were engaged, the plot and narrative unfolded at a natural pace. Contemplative.

Review by Christina ★½

mystery screening at the angelika

end of the movie felt like that one family member who doesn’t know how to end a phone call except it’s brian cox and he keeps talking about fish

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‘Mending the Line’ film review

By Joel Searls

Updated on Jun 2, 2023 5:47 AM PDT

Mending the Line is an engaging, touching and great film that is steadily paced with expert direction. The film features Brian Cox, Sinqua Walls, Perry Mattfield, Chris Galust, Patricia Heaton and Wes Studi. The movie opens in theaters on June 9, 2023 and is a fitting story for June, which is PTSD awareness month.

It is directed by Joshua Caldwell, written by Stephen Camelio and has cinematography by Eve Cohen. The story follows John Colter (Sinqua Walls) who deals with the extreme trauma of war while attempting to readjust back into life stateside. He crosses paths with Ike Fletcher (Brian Cox) through Colter’s physician Dr. Burke (Patricia Heaton) while receiving treatment in Livingston, Montana. Fletcher, a Marine veteran himself, takes Colter under his wing in the grand world of fly fishing.

Through all of it, Colter meets Lucy an excellent photographer who has her own struggles. The three bond over fly fishing as well. We get genuine moments of wisdom and humor with Harrison (Wes Studi) who also mentors Colter in the right way and what Fletcher sometimes means. Studi is a Vietnam Veteran of the Army in real life, so he brings an added depth to his character that makes it seem like he just wandered on set and they started filming him. The film touches strongly on making living worthwhile and finding the reason for waking up in the morning.

The most noteworthy elements of the film include acting, writing, directing and cinematography work. Cox is wonderful as a mentor and Vietnam veteran to Colter. He mentors the Marine back into life and pays attention to things that really matter. The relationship developed by Cox and Walls is truly touching, lively and memorable. His wisdom points hit home and translate from the screen. Many of Cox’s mantras in the movie can be used regularly by anybody in life. Walls does realistic and fine work as an actor. He is entirely believable as a Marine as is Cox and when Walls’s character deals with his traumatic nightmares you really believe he is going through them. Acting on this level is hard to do, and this crew makes it look easy.

Perry Mattfield portrays a wonderful Lucy in the film. She is touching, real and believable. Her character is a photographer turned librarian who reads stories to veterans. Her character is dealing with her own tragic history while trying to find a reason to continue living as well. Colter introduces her to fly fishing and she joins the guys out in the river. We can see the peace these actors portray in the scenes of fly fishing versus the scenes of them back in civilian life. Perry’s character wants to help the mentally injured Colter and even keeps him from getting into further trouble with the law.

Patrica Heaton rounds out the strong cast with her performance as Dr. Burke, a caring, no-nonsense, physician who wants the best for Cotler. We see her soft and stern side thought out, especially when she has to be direct with Colter for him to press forward with his treatment. Her connecting Colter with Fletcher is a wonderful character point and shows her deftness at understanding what ills her patients. She brings a specialness to every role and it certainly shows in her work Dr. Burke. We all could use a doctor like her in our lives.

Overall, the film was moving, thought-provoking and worth re-watching. The ensemble brings together a fine performance and the actors portrayed the real-life issues veterans face daily with courage, honesty and talent. The writing, direction and most importantly cinematography add to the story. Many times the shots of the flowing rivers in nature are so breathtaking, you feel as if you could reach out and catch a fish yourself. Some dramatic scenes moved me so much that I needed a moment to catch back up with the film. I will recommend this movie to my friends, family and fellow veterans. You should see it too. It gets a 3 1/2 out of 4 Red Star Clusters as my rating.

Check it out, you will leave the theater feeling fulfilled and having had your heart warmed.

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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Mending the Line’ on Netflix, with Brian Cox as a Cranky Marine Who Loves Fly-Fishing

Where to stream:.

• Mending The Line

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Mending the Line , now streaming on Netflix, is a quiet story about two decidedly different veterans, each recovering from the scars of war, who form an unexpected and initially reluctant friendship over fly-fishing. 

MENDING THE LINE : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: John Colter (Sinqua Walls) and Ike Fletcher (Brian Cox) share a doctor at the VA hospital. Colter is a young-ish Marine home from a last-day-of-tour injury sustained in Afghanistan, while Ike, his fellow (and much older) Marine, is struggling with an initially unnamed diagnosis that can only be managed, not treated. Colter wants to get well enough to redeploy; Ike just wants to be able to continue his fly-fishing hobby (which becomes dangerous when you’re prone to passing out alone at the river). So Dr. Burke (Patricia Heaton) assigns the younger man to help the older one, thinking it’ll be good for Colter’s mental health and Ike’s physical safety. Colter also meets Lucy (Perry Mattfeld), a local librarian and former photographer, who is dealing with her own grief. Fly-fishing ensues – though Ike always releases the animals, because he’s seen enough killing; apparently just torturing the fish provides enough tranquility. 

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: The wounded veteran desperate to get back on active duty rather than deal with his mental trauma is almost exactly the character Jennifer Lawrence plays in the lovely, low-key drama Causeway from a couple of years ago, and of course it’s hard for any movie to include fly-fishing sequences without bringing to mind Robert Redford’s A River Runs Through It . Those two movies diverge in style, but they’re united in being more immediately compelling than Mending the Line .

Performance Worth Watching: Wes Studi, a character actor who you’ll recognize from movies like The Last of the Mohicans , Heat , Mystery Men , and Hostiles , is typically sturdy and quietly magnetic in a relatively thankless supporting role as Ike’s pal who owns a fly-fishing shop. 

Memorable Dialogue: In one unintentionally funny moment, Colter fails to understand a metaphor about salmon swimming upstream.

Sex and Skin: None. The search for a truly sexy fly-fishing movie continues.

Our Take: It feels a little churlish to complain that a movie that’s at least in part about the patience and gentle care required by the sport of fly-fishing is too slow. On the other hand, this is a movie about an older guy teaching a younger guy to fly-fish where their first fly-fishing scene together doesn’t happen for a full hour into the movie. At first, it seems admirable that director Joshua Caldwell (last seen addressing decidedly different subject matter in the Bella Thorne vehicle Infamous ) is willing to take his time establishing Colter and Ike separately – including a surprisingly lengthy opening battle sequence in Afghanistan – before forcing them together. But both of their characters are simply too familiar to bear this approach without provoking some impatience – especially when the movie spends so much of its time delaying the release of basic information. This is true even once the wheels of the modest plot are set in motion; the exact specifics of Colter’s injury, the details of Ike’s diagnosis and the reasons for his reticence to talk about his war experiences, and the reason Lucy gave up her photography career trickle out slowly over the course of the movie’s second hour. 

Mending the Line makes some worthwhile observations about the psychological wounds so many veterans must carry with them,and gives Brian Cox a powerful little monologue where he counsels his new friend on the perils of soldiers treating military experiences as their “whole story.” But the aforementioned Causeway handles similar material less predictably; Mending the Line can’t figure out a way to dramatize this stuff beyond earnest conversations. Even the fly-fishing, a photogenic sport if there ever was one, looks kind of flat and staid – one sweeping shot has Cox and Walls just standing around on the landscape, as if they’re afraid of spoiling nature by interacting with it. Over and over, the decision to repeatedly linger in the moment feels like it’s being made out of caution rather than actual effectiveness. 

Our Call: Mending the Line is the kind of sensitive and well-intentioned small-scale drama that rarely gets an extensive theatrical release, so its accessibility on Netflix is welcome. That doesn’t, however, make it a particularly good example of the healing-veteran subgenre. Viewers are safe to SKIP IT.

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Flickering Myth

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Movie Review – Mending the Line (2023)

June 7, 2023 by Robert Kojder

Mending the Line , 2023.

Directed by Joshua Caldwell. Starring Brian Cox, Sinqua Walls, Perry Mattfeld, Patricia Heaton, Wes Studi, Irene Bedard, Julian Works, Chris Galust, Tristan Thompson, Pressly Coker, Michaela Sasner, Melanie Rae Wendt, Gabriel Clark, Jenna Ciralli, Scott McCauley, Phaedra Nielson, and Josef Patterson.

A Marine wounded in Afghanistan is sent to a V.A. facility in Montana where he meets a Vietnam Vet who teaches him how to fly fish as a way of dealing with his emotional and physical trauma.

Bafflingly, Mending the Line often feels determined to go out of its way and be about everything but its central hook of fishing as serene therapy for traumatized war veterans struggling to ingratiate themselves back into society. Admittedly, sometimes this is not too bothersome, as director Joshua Caldwell and screenwriter Stephen Camilio sincerely care about the film’s trio of protagonists, which is at its best when they allow these characters to have lengthy, vulnerable, thoughtful conversations with one another. It’s also beneficial that those actors (Sinqua Walls, Brian Cox, and Perry Mattfeld) frequently find ways to rise above clunky material. Other times, they are as bad, forced, and corny as the movie they are in.

Colter (Sinqua Walls, a solid rising talent who deserves better projects) is a Marine veteran indirectly responsible for getting his squad and teammates killed during one last patrol in Afghanistan, which turned out to be an ambush. Amplifying the survivor’s guilt is the fact that everyone was set to go home the next morning, but due to his absence of family during his upbringing, the military is his family, serving as the reason for his encouragement to the boys to take up one last task together. To pile it more, one of the casualties was a childhood friend with a fiancé.

Struggling to find something to live for, Colter starts drinking alcohol excessively and bugs his V.A. doctor (Patricia Heaton) about necessary steps before redeployment. Knowing that he is not mentally or physically fit to do so (he is currently being treated for scar tissue wounds that are properly healing) and that another veteran, Ike (Brian Cox), has been experiencing blackouts while fly-fishing by himself, she insists that he take up that hobby and they hang out together for mutual benefit.

Meanwhile, there’s a librarian named Lucy (Perry Mattfeld) who sometimes comes to the V.A. to read to the veterans, also grieving the loss of a loved one (a plot point that is awkwardly conveyed), crossing paths with Colter in the bookstore when he asks for book recommendations about fly-fishing. That’s probably an overload of information but also indicative that Mending the Line works overtime to bring these characters together conveniently.

Even if the fishing metaphors for moving on and living life are bludgeoned into the viewer through excessive narration (set to an overbearingly mawkish score), it is a refreshing angle to explore military PTSD healing. However, Mending the Line mostly comes across as cliché and false whenever it does attempt to portray PTSD (there are several cheesy nightmare flashbacks to the inciting incident in Afghanistan and depictions of alcoholism that feel inauthentic). It’s also a 2+ hour movie that continues to force new elements of drama, many of which derail an otherwise involving middle stretch.

Sinqua Walls and Perry Mattfeld have engaging chemistry, with the filmmakers wisely not turning their relationship into a love story. However, it feels superfluous anyway in a story about two veterans from different generations fishing and receiving wisdom from one another. Each of the three characters does have at least one moving moment (alone and alongside one another), but Mending the Line loses sight of its narrative, and the compelling acting isn’t enough to save it.

One subplot introduced in the final 30 minutes is resolved so cleanly and dishonestly that it’s all eye-rolling. Mending the Line veers back and forth like bumper cars, from compelling dialogue exchanges to phony drama.

Flickering Myth Rating  – Film: ★ ★  / Movie: ★ ★

Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check  here  for new reviews, follow my  Twitter  or  Letterboxd , or email me at [email protected]

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Mending the Line Movie

Who's Involved:

Brian Cox, Patricia Heaton, Wes Studi, Sinqua Walls, Joshua Caldwell, Perry Mattfeld, Stephen Camelio, Chris Galust

Release Date:

Friday, June 9, 2023 Limited

Plot: What's the story about?

Mending the Line is a story about finding something to make living worthwhile. John Colter, a wounded veteran, returns to the States still carrying the demons of war, hauntingly disturbed by the everyday expectations of friendships and love interests. In Livingston, Montana, he meets Ike, a surly, headstrong fly-fisherman more than twice his age, and Lucy, a talented photographer turned librarian who reads aloud to veterans, both damaged in their own way. While getting treatment for his wounds, both physical and psychological, Colter wants only to re-enlist, to have something to die for. But the real challenge is finding something to live for.

official plot version

4.90 / 5 stars ( 10 users)

Poll: Will you see Mending the Line?

Who stars in Mending the Line: Cast List

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, Riff Raff  

Sinqua Walls

Carry-On, Resort To Love  

Patricia Heaton

The Unbreakable Boy, Moms' Night Out  

Perry Mattfeld

The Idea of You  

Planes: Fire and Rescue, Avatar  

Chris Galust

Who's making Mending the Line: Crew List

A look at the Mending the Line behind-the-scenes crew and production team. The film's director Joshua Caldwell last directed Infamous and Be Somebody .

Joshua Caldwell

Screenwriter

Stephen Camelio

Production Companies

Watch mending the line trailers & videos.

Official Trailer

Production: what we know about mending the line, filming timeline.

• 2023 - March : The film was set to Completed  status.

Mending the Line Release Date: When was the film released?

Mending the Line was a Limited release in 2023 on Friday, June 9, 2023 . There were 18 other movies released on the same date, including Transformers: Rise of the Beasts , Flamin’ Hot and 97 Minutes . As a Limited release, Mending the Line will only be shown in select movie theaters across major markets. Please check Fandango and Atom Tickets to see if the film is playing in your area.

Q&A Asked about Mending the Line

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• Mon., May. 15, 2023
• added Official Trailer to movie trailers & videos
• added a photo to the photo gallery
• added Stephen Camelio as screenwriter to movie credits
• added Chris Galust as actor to movie credits
• added a synopsis
• added a poster to the photo gallery
• changed the US film release date from TBA to June 9, 2023
• set film release to Limited
• set the MPA rating to R for language and some violent images

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Is Mending the Line Movie a True Story? What's Real Vs. Fake

Mending the Line , a recent drama starring Brian Cox and Sinqua Walls, just made its Netflix debut, leaving many wondering about where its true story originated from.

Telling a post-war military story, the movie was written by Stephen Camilo. It debuted in various film festivals in 2022, before seeing a theatrical release the next year.

The movie has themes of survivor's guilt and PTSD directly alongside the power of strong bonds and hope.

What In Mending the Line Is True?

While Mending the Line tells a realistic story, it is not based on true events. However, it does have real-life influences.

Speaking with Flylords in 2022, writer Stephen Camilo revealed that the story was inspired by his father, who survived service in Vietnam but developed cancer due to exposure to Agent Orange during his time fighting.

Camilo told Flylords that his goal was to create a story merging "the destructive elements of war with the healing aspects of nature," and later learned about organizations "using fly fishing to heal," like is shown in the movie:

"My father was in the Army and fought in Vietnam. And though he survived the war, in 2004 he was diagnosed with cancer caused by Agent Orange exposure during his time in the war. Around that time, my wife and I had moved from New York City to Montana and we were living and working in Yellowstone National Park I was writing about fly fishing for various publications. When he passed in 2013, the meditative nature of fly fishing really helped me deal with my grief and I had the idea to write a story that combined the destructive elements of war with the healing aspects of nature. It wasn’t until later that I found out about organizations like Warriors & Quiet Waters and others that were actually doing this in real life – using fly fishing to heal."

He later explained that Mending the Line "is a very personal story for everyone involved," as many have experience with or around military service, and are (or know people who are) "dealing with the trauma" that comes with it.

Camilo said that many of them found that fly fishing " started the healing process and allowed them to find peace," as it did for the characters in the movie:

"This is a very personal story for everyone involved. The sheer act of writing was an exercise in healing as it helped me process my father’s death and understand my mother’s pain as well as the courage she has shown to carry on since his passing. Almost everyone associated with this film had a similar story. Some served in the military themselves or know someone dealing with the effects of going to war. Others lost loved ones and are still dealing with the trauma. Then there were those who, like the main characters of the story, dealt with their trauma through fly fishing, which started the healing process and allowed them to find peace. We hope by telling this story it will also be an inspiration for those still dealing with PTS or any type of trauma to start their healing journey. Whether they do it with a fly rod in their hand or not, that’s up to them."

Director Joshua Caldwell told ScreenRant that as a fly fisherman himself (like Camilo), "it was super important that we got this aspect of the movie correct." This marked another element of the movie based in real life:

"I'm a fly fisherman, and Stephen Camelio, who wrote the movie, is a fly fisherman. For us, it was super important that we got this aspect of the movie correct. Because, if you don't, you're missing out on a tremendous opportunity to involve that community, and get the support of that community. If you mess it up, they're not going to come support the film. I really wanted it to be a high-level portrayal of fly-fishing."

So while the specific story of John Colter's experience with war, PTSD, and fly fishing is not true in its entirety, it comes from elements of real life that informed the narrative.

Mending the Line is available to stream on Netflix.

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Gillian Blum has been a writer at The Direct since 2022, reporting primarily from New York City. Though she covers news from across the entertainment industry, Gillian has a particular focus on Marvel and DC, including comics, movies, and television shows. She also commonly reports on Percy Jackson, Invincible, and other similar franchises.

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• "Mending the Line" is not based on a true story, but modernizes real-life veterans' experiences for an inspiring narrative.
• Camilo's choice of fly fishing reflects his healing process after losing his father, adding realism to the film.
• Despite being fictional, the movie resonates with real emotion, honoring Camilo's father and the impact of war on veterans.

Although Mending the Line sees war veterans Ike Fletcher and John Colter bonding over their shared love for fly fishing as a means of dealing with their Post-War trauma, it begs whether its events are based on a true story. Mending the Line is one of Brian Cox's best movies , as it sees him in a mentorship role to the film's younger protagonist John, played by Sinqua Walls. John is a wounded Afghanistan veteran who takes up residence in Montana, whereupon he befriends Cox's Ike at a Veteran's Affairs facility, and learns how to cope with his trauma via fly fishing.

Filled with drama, heartbreak, and themes of overcoming incredible odds, Mending the Line has all the makings of one of the best movies based on a true story . Additionally, Mending the Line 's structure and solid acting performances lend further credence to its credibility as a true story . Although it might not be as action-packed as Dunkirk , American Sniper , or Hacksaw Ridge , Mending the Line makes great strides to solidify itself as one of the best war movies of all time . With its slow-burn approach to storytelling and focus on fly fishing, viewers may question whether the movie is true or fictitious.

Scottish actor Brian Cox is known for Succession, but he has other roles worth noting, too. Some are his best, others not so much.

Mending The Line Is Not Based On A True Story

Despite the inspired performances of its two leads, Mending the Line is not based on a true story . Written by Stephen Camilo, Mending the Line is actually based on real-life rehabilitation centers for war veterans, which places an emphasis on getting the former soldiers better acquainted with nature in an effort to combat their post-traumatic stress disorders. As per The Direct , Camilo acknowledged that rehabilitation facilities, such as Warriors & Quiet Waters, helped him process his own grief after losing his father, a Vietnam veteran, to cancer due to Agent Orange exposure.

Mending the Line takes those elements of Camilo's real-life experiences, and modernizes them through the lens of its protagonist, John . Whereas Cox's Ike Fletcher is a Vietnam veteran, John is an Afghanistan veteran, and despite their differences in generational struggles, they have a shared trauma of reintegrating into society. By showing audiences that war can have a destructive impact on anyone's psyche regardless of age, and then demonstrating how they can overcome their trauma together, it makes for an inspiring story, all while honoring Camilo's father and the impact that his death had on the screenwriter.

Camilo specifically chose fly fishing as the central sport because of its ability to help him cope with losing his father.

Hollywood gave up on Vietnam War movies after Apocalypse Now and The Deer Hunter perfected it. But there was a new wave of Vietnam films in the 1980s.

Mending The Line Was Partially Inspired By Stephen Camilo's Father

Camilo specifically chose fly fishing as the central sport because of its ability to help him cope with losing his father, and because of its positive impact on many of the other veterans he met prior to writing Mending the Line . Speaking with The Direct , Camilo elaborated:

The sheer act of writing was an exercise in healing as it helped me process my father’s death and understand my mother’s pain as well as the courage she has shown to carry on since his passing.

Despite its fictionalized storytelling, director Josh Caldwell's real-life love of fly fishing helped bring a necessary realism to Mending the Line . With Caldwell and Camilo's love of fly fishing, and Camilo basing the story on his life, Mending the Line feels like a true story despite not actually being based on one .

Mending the Line

Not available

Joshua Caldwell directs Mending the Line, a dramatic war-adjacent film that follows a wounded veteran known as John Colter upon his return to the United States after Afghanistan. With difficulty overcoming his trauma and finding something to live for, he meets an older fisherman named Ike and a young woman named Lucy, who begin to help him change his outlook and find a way forward.

Source: The Direct

Mending the Line

Now playing in theaters, play trailer, full cast & crew.

Mending the Line is a story about finding something to make living worthwhile. John Colter, a wounded veteran, returns to the States still carrying the demons of war, hauntingly disturbed by the everyday expectations of friendships and love interests. In Livingston, Montana, he meets Ike, a surly, headstrong fly-fisherman more than twice his age, and Lucy, a talented photographer turned librarian who reads aloud to veterans, both damaged in their own way. While getting treatment for his wounds, both physical and psychological, Colter wants only to re-enlist, to have something to die for. But the real challenge is finding something to live for.

Joshua Caldwell

Stephen Camelio

Brian Cox, Sinqua Walls, Perry Mattfeld, Chris Galust, with Patricia Heaton, and Wes Studi

Where to Watch

Film website.

Poster Coming Soon

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What to watch this fall: Here are the TV shows we're looking forward to

Eric Deggans

Aisha Harris

Linda Holmes

Glen Weldon

Clockwise from left: How to Die Alone, Matlock, Leonardo da Vinci, Grotesquerie, Interior Chinatown, Somebody Somewhere Ian Watson/Hulu, Brooke Palmer/CBS, PBS, Prashant Gupta/FX, Sandy Morris/HBO hide caption

Fall was once when all the new TV shows premiered, and when all the reruns finally ended. These days, things are a lot more spread out, with some series returning after long absences and some showing up for the first time. New shows will be scary and soapy and hopefully funny — and will make new trips to both the Marvel and DC worlds.

Slow Horses, Season 4, Sept. 4, Apple TV+ It is a bit of a tribute to Apple TV+’s low profile that some TV fans have only now heard about this brilliant version of Mick Herron’s subversive spy novels. Gary Oldman is deliciously witty and slovenly as weary spy Jackson Lamb, deftly leading a misfit crew consigned to a British intelligence office reserved for screw-ups. This time, one of Lamb’s staff is tangled in a plot involving his own grandfather, a former bigwig poignantly played by Jonathan Pryce, who may have killed someone while confused by dementia. — Eric Deggans

Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, Sept. 5, Peacock A starry cast including Samuel L. Jackson, Taraji P. Henson and Kevin Hart has a lot of fun with this series, based on a true story, about an armed robbery of an Atlanta afterparty on the night of Muhammad Ali’s historic comeback fight. Total commitment to the 1970 setting extends to the music, the hair, the costumes, and a playful production style. — Linda Holmes

The Old Man, Season 2, Sept. 12, FX, Hulu Call it something of a fatherhood triangle: Jeff Bridges’ retired CIA operative Dan Chase has teamed with John Lithgow’s ex-FBI man Harold Harper to save Chase’s daughter – who has been kidnapped by a powerful Afghan leader who says he is really her father. Some scenes unfold like the craziest acting exercises ever; others feel like the mashup of Mission Impossible and Parenthood you never knew you needed. It builds to a treatise on aging and regret played against a grand geopolitical backdrop. — Eric Deggans

How to Die Alone, Sept. 13, Hulu The wonderful Natasha Rothwell ( The White Lotus , Insecure ) created and stars in this comedy series about an employee at JFK airport whose near-death experience forces her to reexamine her life. Rothwell is an enchanting presence with the capacity for both great tenderness and wild humor, and she's precisely the kind of person who should be getting the opportunity to create her own show. — Linda Holmes

Agatha All Along, Sept. 18, Disney+ The best, funniest part (Kathryn Hahn's Agatha Harkness) of the best Marvel TV property to date ( Wandavision ) gets her own spotlight series. Agatha assembles a brand new coven of weirdos — and the series' casting director has clearly been reading my diary (Patti LuPone! Aubrey Plaza! Sasheer Zamata!). Together, Agatha and Co. undergo a series of trials which promise to offer up a whistle-stop tour of the creepier, horror-inflected corners of the Marvel universe. — Glen Weldon

The Penguin, Sept. 19, HBO, Max Why base a spin-off show on a secondary character from a two-year-old superhero movie? One answer is star Colin Farrell, amazingly unrecognizable as Oswald “Oz” Cobb, a small-time hood in Gotham City with a disfigured foot that gives him a gait like … well … a certain flightless bird. Oz didn’t get enough screen time in Matt Reeves’ gritty, Seven -style Batman movie. But selling viewers on a Batman-free tale about a thug who becomes Gotham's crime boss may take more Hollywood magic than even Farrell possesses. — Eric Deggans

Matlock, Sept. 22, CBS, Paramount+ Rather than update Andy Griffith’s old legal show, CBS takes a bigger swing, casting Kathy Bates as Madeline “Matty” Matlock – an attorney in her 70s who jokes her name is just like the old TV show. (Yup, Griffith's series actually exists here!) She lands as an associate at a prestigious law firm, where her unassuming demeanor and smarts solves cases just like Griffith did. But she’s also hiding a deeper secret that will either make this show a brilliant reinvention, or an overly complicated laughingstock. — Eric Deggans

Grotesquerie, Sept. 25, FX, Hulu This may be the oddest buddy cop drama in years: Niecy Nash-Betts plays put-upon police detective Lois Tryon; teamed with a nun who is also a journalist, Tryon is working to solve a series of heinous crimes which may have been concocted to taunt her. It’s written and co-created by Ryan Murphy, the producer behind American Horror Story and Netflix’s Monster anthology series, so expect maximum weirdness, style, creepiness and horror. — Eric Deggans

Doctor Odyssey, Sept. 26, ABC, Hulu Sometimes it seems like regular, non-taxing TV has gone away, but it really hasn't. For example, this fall brings Doctor Odyssey , a drama series in which Joshua Jackson plays a doctor who goes to work on a cruise ship and manages all the medical emergencies. And Don Johnson plays the captain! A little luxury, a little medical drama — sounds like fun, to be honest. — Linda Holmes

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol, Sept. 29, AMC This was a team-up Walking Dead fans were promised years ago, when a spin-off was first dreamed up with weary hunter Daryl Dixon (Norman Reedus) and abused wife/survivor Carol Peletier (Melissa McBride). But Reedus wound up going it alone in the first season, as Daryl landed in France. For round two, he’s reunited with McBride’s Carol, though her road to finding him will likely be an arduous journey – like everything in the Walking Dead 's zombie apocalypse. — Eric Deggans

Disclaimer, Oct. 11, Apple TV+ Alfonso Cuarón’s been pretty quiet since his 2018 masterpiece Roma , and everything about his latest project screams “must watch.” He wrote and directed every episode of this series adaptation, which stars Cate Blanchett as a powerful journalist who’s shocked to discover she’s the thinly-veiled inspiration for a character in a novel. The old, embittered man who published the book is played by Kevin Kline – and he’s more than happy to witness her downfall. — Aisha Harris

What We Do in the Shadows, Season 6, Oct. 21, FX, Hulu The funniest — and not coincidentally, the weirdest — comedy on television wraps up with its sixth and final season. There's no telling what will happen to Staten Island's favorite vampires, as the series has always embraced a healthy amount of chaos. Expect a few audience favorites to return for a victory lap, and for a finale that traffics in real emotion while maintaining the bone-dry silliness we've come to love. — Glen Weldon

Somebody Somewhere, Season 3, Oct. 27, HBO This intimate, searching and truthful gem of a comedy series is ending with Season 3, and I'll miss it when it ends. The great Bridget Everett plays a woman mourning the loss of her sister who returns to her small Kansas hometown to figure herself out. The show's generous and warm-hearted as hell, but don't go calling it "sweet" — it's far too sharp and clear-eyed for that. If you've slept on this show, now's the time to correct that. — Glen Weldon

Cross, Nov. 14, Prime Video It’s been nearly 30 years since Morgan Freeman brought brainy forensic psychologist/police detective Alex Cross from James Patterson’s novels to life in the film Kiss the Girls . (The less said about Tyler Perry's stiff version in 2012, the better). Now Black Adam alum Aldis Hodge takes on Cross in this new series – already picked up for a second season – playing him as a younger, buffer version of the driven hero who digs into the psyche of killers and criminals to catch them. — Eric Deggans

Leonardo da Vinci, Nov. 18 and 19, PBS Ken Burns – a filmmaker often called America’s biographer – peels back myths around his first non-American subject, one of the world’s greatest artists. In addition to painting works like the Mona Lisa, da Vinci filled notebooks with theories on mathematics, physics, anatomy and more. Burns delivers these stories with his usual mix of imagery and talking heads – including director Guillermo del Toro! – showing how this genius draftsman, painter, scientist and engineer made history. — Eric Deggans

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Interior Chinatown, Nov. 19, Hulu Celebrated author Charles Yu adapts his own novel, which has an intriguing premise: A struggling background actor playing the “Generic Asian Man” on a Law & Order -type show suddenly gets pulled into a real-life investigation after witnessing a crime. The cast, which includes comedians Jimmy O. Yang and Ronny Chieng, is very promising, as is the presence of Taika Waititi, an executive producer and director of the pilot episode. — Aisha Harris

Edited by Clare Lombardo. Produced by Beth Novey.

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