Mermaid Romance?

Last night I watched a delightful movie."Ondine",recently released on dvd ,is a drama/romance set on the coast of Ireland.Colin Farrell plays a fisherman,Syracuse, who pulls in his seine net and is startled to find a beautiful young woman in it.Somehow she gasps sputters and breathes;she's alive.Although she is thankful,she refuses to come ashore and be seen by other people,so he takes her to an isolated cove with a little cottage where his deceased mother used to live.

Syracuse,or 'Circus',as the locals call him ,has an alcoholic ex-wife and a beautiful daughter Annie.They say you should never share the stage with children or animals;they'll steal the show.Annie steals the show.She is around 11 years old and in a wheelchair as she is sickly due to a failed kidney requiring regular dialysis treatment.Syracuse tells Annie a bedtime story of a fisherman who pulls a beautiful woman from his net while out fishing.Annie says she must be a 'selkie',a seal come ashore in the guise of a woman.She goes to the library and researches selkies and mermaids.Her curiosity leads her to discovering her fathers secret.

The movie is filmed in Ireland and the scenery is gorgeous and the soundtrack plaintive and haunting at times.Is this a modern day fairy tale?Is she a mermaid?a selkie? an ondine or undine,a water spirit or nymph?

Although the film has a few darker moments it is basically charming and romantic and suitable for most members of your family.I'm sure your wife,girlfriend or young teen daughter will thank you for turning them on to this movie and I hope if you find a copy that it brings you as much joy as it did for me.