Ondine (2010)
Starring Colin Farrell, Alicja Bachleda, Alison Barry, and Stephen Rea
Directed by Neil Jordan
***Early Review -- Released in local theaters Friday, June 11***
A lovely modern-day fairy tale, Ondine reminds me of an infinitely better version of M. Night Shaymalan's Lady in the Water (good Lord, that movie was an abomination). In fact, it kind of pains me to mention the two films in the same sentence.
Syracuse (Farrell) is an Irish fisherman who, when pulling up his lines one afternoon, discovers a woman in his net. The woman remembers nothing, so Syracuse invites her to his house, allowing her to live there and eventually begins to fall in love with the woman now called Ondine. Syracuse's precocious daughter Annie begins to suspect that Ondine may in fact be a selky -- a creature from Irish folklore that is a seal that can turn itself into a human form. While Annie's thoughts are laughed at, the town soon begins to believe that some strange occurrences may in fact be because Ondine is a sea creature.
The film looks beautiful, capturing the rustic look of a lovely seaside town in Ireland. Director Neil Jordan keeps the movie moving along at a brisk pace -- and this is a film that could easily have felt infinitely longer than it actually was. Jordan's also able to pull out a wonderfully subdued performance from Colin Farrell who plays a caring father -- a role that I wouldn't expect from him based on other roles I've seen him take on. Additionally, the lovely Alicja Bachleda plays her very difficult role -- is she or isn't she a fantasy sea creature? -- with an incredibly natural quality.
The film's fault unfortunately falls on the shoulders of the role of Annie. It's not the fault of the young actress, Alison Barry, who takes on her first acting role here. It instead is the fault of the character. In a movie where the other characters felt fresh and original, Annie is saddled with a failing kidney awaiting a transplant and is much too wise for her years -- she's the "smart sick kid" and we've seen that too many times before. The fact that Annie plays a major role is a fairly big detriment to the film.
Nonetheless, for the most part I was impressed with Ondine and found myself won over by the simple, charming tale.
The RyMickey Rating: B
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