Review of Ondine (2010) by Davey M — 18 Dec 2010
It's been awhile since I've been this let down by a movie. It starts off great--better than great, it's poetic, beautiful, one of the most romantic movies in years. But then the Cute Kid comes in the picture, and it's not long before things devolve beyond all recognition into cliche and outlandishness and stilted dialogue and plot twists that are a lot harder to buy into than selkie folklore.
Still, though Neil Jordan the writer makes one unfortunate blunder after another, he's in mostly excellent form as a director--he gets nice performances out of the two leads particularly, he and his DP (the ever-reliable Christopher Doyle) capture some gorgeous images, and the sweet, plaintive score sets a perfect mood.
Ultimately, its strengths are what make its weaknesses so painful--the first act shows this could have been one of the most romantic romance films ever made (right up there alongside that other, better Irish import, "Once"), but once it takes a turn for the worse it stays there.
This review of Ondine (2010) was written by Davey M on 18 Dec 2010.
Ondine has generally received positive reviews.
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