Ondine (2010)

Arty Indie about a fisherman who finds a mysterious woman off the coast of Ireland

A fisherman from the Cork area of southern Ireland (Colin Farrell) finds an enigmatic female in the water (Alicja Bachleda) whom his handicapped daughter (Alison Barry) believes is a selkie, a being capable of changing from seal to human form by shedding its skin. What is the truth? Dervla Kirwan plays the ex-wife, Tony Curran the “stepdad” and Stephen Rea the guiding priest.

Written & directed by Neil Jordan, “Ondine” (2009) is a lyrical coastal drama/mystery reminiscent of “The Seventh Stream” (2001) and “The Secret of Roan Inish” (1994). It mixes the haunting seaside fisherman element of “Orca” (1977) with the coastal mysteriousness of “Half Light” (2006), the romance of “Message in a Bottle” (1999) and the melancholic folk of “McCabe & Mrs. Miller” (1971).

The filmmaking is artsy with seeming ambiguities, sometimes annoyingly so (depending on your taste), while exploring the concept of wish fulfillment in the face of grim realities. Bachleda’s beauty is tastefully displayed.

The characters speak in Irish/Scottish brogue and the dialogue is often realistically mumbled, making it difficult to understand for outsiders. Unfortunately, there are no English subtitles on the disc; so if you watch it via streaming I advise using subtitles.

The folk-oriented soundtrack sometimes throws in a welcome oddity like “Bathe in Blood” by Evile and "Then Comes Dudley" by The Jesus Lizard.

The film runs 1 hour, 42 minutes and was shot at Beara, County Cork, Ireland.

GRADE: B