Ondine (12A) ***
Directed by: Neil Jordan
Starring: Colin Farrell, Alicja Bachleda, Alison Barry, Stephen Rea
After flailing with The Brave One, Neil Jordan returns to his native Ireland to film another contemporary fairytale. The folklore of Ondine - specifically that of the “selki”, the sea creature who ventures onto land to win a mortal’s heart - is familiar from John Sayles’ The Secret of Roan Inish, but younger viewers might just enjoy it as a live-action Ponyo. Syracuse (Farrell), a divorced, alcoholic fisherman, gets a shock when a half-drowned girl ends up in his nets. He initially suspects she’s an asylum seeker, although she magically triples his catch; no wonder he’s soon falling overboard for her.
Jordan makes one obvious concession to movielore - this selki (Bachleda) is a leggy supermodel-type clad in diaphanous dresses - and there’s an awkward tonal shift late on as Ondine’s true identity is revealed. Still, Farrell’s soulfully salty, and Stephen Rea is typically wry as a priest who senses traditional Catholicism is no match for this siren’s song. Too quiet to make a dent against Alice, perhaps, but as shot by Christopher Doyle in fisherman’s blues and greens, it never lacks for poetry - and, needless to say, Jordan’s Ireland is a good deal more convincing than Leap Year’s.
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