Fisherman Syracuse (Colin Farrell) pull out a half-drowned Ondine (Alicja Bachleda) from his net. His daughter Annie is sick living with his ex-wife Maura. He lets Ondine stay in his late mother's cottage. Her singing seems to help with his catch. Annie starts to believe that Ondine is a selkie.Neil Jordan has married a grungy indie with a sexy magical fable. The stark rundown harbor town contrast with the sexual fantasy being hinted at. It doesn't always blend together. It's a moody affair that doesn't completely work. I definitely wanted it to go harder into the fantasy realm but it seems intent on grounding it with the grungy real world.

I've always been a great admirer of writer/director Neil Jordan and consider him to be one of the greatest storytellers in the world of cinema. "Ondine" is one of my favorite movies of his, simply because it more or less represents a return to his roots and his devotion for fantasy/fairy-tale movies. Of course he will never make another masterpiece like "The Company of Wolves", but I very much prefer his fantasy films over the more mainstream and Hollywoodesque titles like "The Brave One" or "The Good Thief". Okay, so admittedly I'm a bit biased, but everything about "Ondine" feels right straight from the beginning. Beautiful images of the Irish Sea and coast side, enchanting music, a moody atmosphere and the immediate introduction of melancholic and deeply convoluted main characters. This film also finally offers native Irishman Colin Farrell the opportunity to depict the protagonist he was born to depict! Syracuse – nicknamed Circus because he used to behave like a clown when he was still a drunkard – is an independent fisherman on the verge of poverty, continuously in dispute with his alcoholic ex-wife and only trying to remain on the right path out of love for his severely ill daughter Annie. During the opening sequences of the film already, Syracuse drags his fishing nets back aboard of his boat and is astonished to find a beautiful girl caught in them. She calls herself Ondine and insists that only Syracuse knows of her existence. He shelters her in his deceased mother's coastal shed and doesn't mind keeping her around because all of a sudden his fisherman's nets are now miraculously full of thick juicy lobsters and rare quality salmons. When Annie finds out about Ondine, the little girl is convinced that she's a Selkie; a folklore mermaid-creature that can only remain on land if she marries a landsman and buries her seal coat. For the vast majority of its running time "Ondine" is a truly marvelous fantasy adventure with a dreamy atmosphere and identifiable characters. Unfortunately the climax is a bit disappointing, because Neil Jordan found it necessary to give a rational explanation at the end after all. I, for one, would have been perfectly satisfied if the plot remained mysterious and fantastic. "Ondine" is brought to an even higher quality-level thanks to the mesmerizing music of the awesome Icelandic band Sigur Rós (YouTube them in case you don't know their music!) and stellar performances from the entire ensemble cast. Colin Farrell is terrific, as stated already, but also the young girl Alison Barry impresses as Syracuse's daughter and Dervla Kirwan is brilliant as his loathsome and possessive ex- wife. Neil Jordan regular Stephen Rea appears as the priest where Syracuse goes to confess and – last but not least – there's the Polish actress Alicja Bachleda as the titular Ondine. She's a good actress and definitely one of the most ravishing beings – mermaid, human or otherwise – on this planet. I certainly don't blame Colin Farrell that he kept her close to him even long after the film was finalized

old tale. and its new pieces. a film about heart of solitude, force of myth, beauty of faith. and love as arena of freedom. mystery, legend, the image of a child about a woman, a fisherman with many problems and a kind of spell. a not special movie with science to give crumbs of delicate emotions and to make a legend more profound. not very right in details but exercise of good art to create emotion. and nice occasion to understand the limits of reality as fruit of dream. a interesting surprise - role of Colin Farell. a smart way to sustain drawing of character - dialogs with the priest and circle of past. delicate solution to create a gray world with fragile borders. inspired music and images. a good movie. not extraordinary. just beautiful. like each slice of life.

Basically "The Secret of Roan Inish" darkened with Irish realism including with alcoholism, kidney failure and, in the case of Colin Farrell, really bad hair and an impenetrable accent. Critics made a big deal about the thickness of the Irish brogues in this gritty fairy tale and for good reason - most American audiences and I suspect most others outside Ireland itself will catch every third word. Ultimately, Neil Jordan movies are more about place, tone and the unexpected emotional pops that catch you off-guard and these are in abundance here. The frank depictions of alcoholics recovering and otherwise tell a story that make their words largely superfluous and the wide shots of Ireland's darkly beautiful coast need no verbal accompaniment. Alison Barry, as the daughter of the "recovering" alcoholic Syracuse played by Farrell, and a definitely not recovering mother is more understandable. While she genuinely does a nice job in the part, her character Annie is a wee bit too self-sufficient, mature and together given all that is against her. A little more emotional vulnerability would have made the character more believable. The plot itself is solidly credible and it is worth staying around to see how it turns out. In short, if you can find a version with English subtitles this is worth the view, if not try "The Secret of Roan Inish" instead.