There's a cozy Colin Farrell movie you may have missed that is available to stream, and it's one that doesn't involve all of ThePenguin's 'froufrou'—this 2009 Irish film couldn't be further from Gotham.Ondine is a romantic drama with an understated performance from Farrell that features an underrated magical creature with eons of lore behind it: the selkie.
Not to be confused with the 2020 film Undine, Ondine was directed by Neil Jordan, the director of Interview with the Vampire and Breakfast on Pluto. It follows a single father named Syracuse, played by Farrell, who catches a mysterious woman (Alicja Bachleda-Curuś) in his fishing net. She calls herself "Ondine," and as Syracuse tells stories about her to his sick daughter Annie (Alison Barry), the little girl starts to theorize thatthe woman is a selkie. It's worth watching for the sleepy, gorgeous coastal scenery alone, but there's also a dreamy quality to the film that keeps the fairy tale alive.
The Selkie Legend Gets the Spotlight It Deserves in ‘Ondine'
Selkies are often found in Irish and Scottish folklore; they're believed to be half-seal, half-humans who shed their seal skin and long to return to the sea no matter what kind of life they've built on the shore. If you want more selkie stories, check out the 1994 coming-of-age film The Secret of Roan Inishand the Cartoon Saloon animated film Song of the Sea—which is part of the studio's Irish folklore trilogy. But despite these excellent examples of mythical filmmaking, there still really aren't enough flicks featuring selkies—they should arguably be as popular as werewolves, mermaids, and vampires in storytelling. It's also worth noting that, as far as legends about shape-shifters go, they can be very romantic.
‘Ondine’ Blends Fact and Fiction in a Modern Fairy Tale
Despite the hazy setting, the gentle love story between Syracuse and Ondine takes place in the real world. The characters struggle with money trouble, alcoholism, shame, illness, and simply small-town life. Syracuse is a good father, but his daughter's broken family life is far from perfect. (Fun fact: Farrell and Dervla Kirwan, who plays his character's ex-wife and Annie's mother, both starred in the Irish soap opera Ballykissangel back in the 90s. This marked Farrell's first on-screen role!) As the story goes on, you start to wonder if there's any magic involved at all.
Is Ondine truly a selkie, or is this just a chimerical story to soothe a little girl and her dad in a tough situation? Does the truth even matter as Syracuse and Ondine fall in love? Those are the questions the movie plays with throughout its runtime. The way it reckons with the healing and escapist power of folklore is similar to the children's novel Afternoon of the Elves, about a girl whose whimsical neighbor makes up fantasy stories to escape her bad home life, by Janet Taylor Lisle. It also has shades of Guillermo Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth and the recently restored 2006 Tarsem Singh film The Fall.
"Some things there's no moving from. And I think that's a good thing."
As for Farrell fans, his character is long-haired, soft, sweet, and quite deeply sad; the people in town even call him "Circus" for short because they think he's a clown. It's devastating, and the polar opposite of The Penguin, showcasing Farrell's range of acting abilities as well as the roles he chooses to tackle. From Minority Reportand Miami Vice to The Lobster and The Banshees of Inisherin, Farrell has never had trouble showing his abilities as an actor. But if Ondine is exactly what you need right now, you're welcome, as everyone deserves a little supernatural, or supernatural-ish, romance in their lives.
Image via Paramount Vantage
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