bon6417 I did not expect this... SUPER film which is a hidden gem. So enjoyed the story- gives hope for the lost soul's of the world. A must see for anyone who enjoys luck and tragedy crossing paths and resulting in a feel good ending. I would buy this in a heartbeat.I was intrigued from the beginning and can see why it was nominated for awards. Have no idea why it did not do better in the box office? Perhaps this was just not marketed correctly...For parents... the rating is about right. Young teens would probably enjoy this, but may be a hair heavy for the under 10 crowd. Final note- I would watch it again and enjoy it just the same if not more.

Andres Salama In a small village in Western Ireland, a fisherman named Circus (Colin Farrell) finds one day on the net of his fishing barge a woman who calls herself Ondine (Polish actress Alicja Bachleda Curus). The woman is disoriented and refuses to see other people. He gets her living arrangements in a old shack that belonged to his deceased mother. He tends to believe she is a mythical creature called a Selkie, a mermaid like creature from Irish folklore. She encourages him to believe this. They become increasingly warm to each other, and while she at first refuses to see other people, she slowly relents, and becomes friendly with his sick wheelchair bound young daughter. For the first hour, this film seems tender, attractive and entertaining; however, in the second part of the movie, it takes a turn for the worse (Warning: BIG SPOILER AHEAD) as it transpires than instead of a mythical figure, Ondine is a drug mule from Eastern Europe on the run from drug dealers. And our interest drops like a stone. Neil Jordan directed.

Manal S. "The truth is not what you know. It's what you believe."This is a movie about a myth that materializes in reality, hope that finds its way through despair. A movie that will restore your faith in the imaginary and will leave you believing that we are re-living our favorite childhood fairy tales everyday but with different details. This is a movie about hope and happiness; hope that favors only the strong, and happiness that needs courage, persistence and belief. And as the priest tells Syracuse, it is always easier to fall into misery because it does not require much effort. It's happiness that needs working at. Everyday, unlimited opportunities of happiness knock on our door but we foolishly waste them or abandon them halfway because of our crippling sense of reality, cowardice, or lack of faith.Ondine is about a former alcoholic Irish fisherman, Syracuse, who fishes out of the water a woman whom his sick daughter believes to be a Silkie, a mythological creature with magical powers that lives as a seal in the water and sheds off its skin on land. Throughout his journey to uncover the true identity of the woman, to know whether she belongs to the real or the imaginary world, the fisherman (played well enough by Colin Farrell) discovers what it takes to deserve happiness.Alicja Bachelda was beautiful as Ondine. Her body and facial features truly give you the feeling that she belongs to a different world. The film is visually beautiful as well, except for a few extremely dim lit scenes which I believe were done so on purpose to juxtapose the gruesomely 'real' with the supposedly 'imaginary.'

Desertman84 A man makes a startling discovery that may or may not be magical in this drama from writer and director Neil Jordan entitled,Ondine.The film stars Colin Farrell and Alicja Bachleda together with Stephen Rea,Dervla Kirwan,Don Wycherley,Carrie Crowley and Alison Barry. In Ondine's storyline,Syracuse, called "Circus", is an Irish fisherman and former drunk, with a daughter named Annie, who is suffering kidney failure and uses a motorized wheelchair, and an ex-wife named Maura. One day, he finds a young woman called Ondine in his net, whom he resuscitates. The woman is disoriented, but refuses hospitalization and doesn't want to be seen by people, so Syracuse takes her to his deceased mother's house. Later, at dialysis, he tells Annie a story about a fisherman who pulled in his nets and discovered a woman. Annie believes the woman in the net is a selkie - a creature that are able to become human by taking off their seal skins, and can return to seal form by putting it back on. A man is seen lurking around the docks seemly looking for someone or something. It is later revealed that Ondine is actually a Romainian drug mule and the man lurking around the docks is the man Ondine works for. The man finds Ondine and wants the backpack (full of drugs) she lost at sea while trying to evade the Coast Guard (which is why Syracuse found Ondine in the ocean)The backpack is in the ocean inside a lobster trap; as the Romainians are trying to get the trap, Ondine makes them trip over a rope and fall overboard. They cannot swim so they both drown. In the end Syracuse marries Ondine so she can stay in Ireland, but mostly because he and Annie love her.This is a charming movie from Neil Jordan.Obviously,he made something magical out of a fairy tale. He makes us believe in the possibility of something we know to be impossible.Also,it is very romantic.The performance of Colin Farrell and Alicja Bachleda makes their love story convincing and compelling.This is a must-see for people who love fairy tales that is made for adults.