Mississippi Mermaid (La Sirène du Mississipi) (1969)
Average Rating: 7.3/10
Reviews Counted: 13
Fresh: 11 | Rotten: 2
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 7.1/10
Critic Reviews: 7
Fresh: 6 | Rotten: 1
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 2,434
My Rating
Movie Info
A rare mid-career flop for director François Truffaut when it was released, Mississippi Mermaid has become a cult favorite, thanks in part to the availability of the original French version, which added 13 minutes to the U.S. release running time. Adapted from a story by William Irish, it's a noirish tale of a man who orders a mail-order bride but receives instead a con woman. Louis Mahe (Jean-Paul Belmondo) owns a tobacco factory on the remote Indian Ocean island of Reunion. His bride, Julie
Jan 15, 1969 Wide
Jan 23, 2001
Film Desk
Cast
-
Jean-Paul Belmondo
Louis -
Catherine Deneuve
Julie -
Michel Bouquet
Comolli -
Nelly Borgeaud
Berthe -
Marcel Berbert
Jardine -
Martine Ferriere
Landlady -
Roland Thénot
Richard
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All Critics (15) | Top Critics (8) | Fresh (11) | Rotten (2) | DVD (2)
Mississippi is a film noir shot in dazzling color, a Hitchcock movie with the soul of a Jean Renoir drama.
Top CriticTry to view this tale of a siren's song as something chewier than a cover version of Hitch's greatest hits, and what's left is a facile take on l'amour fou.
Truffaut's frequently overlooked eighth feature isn't kid stuff.
It defies easy definition and blithely triumphs over what initially appears to be structural schizophrenia. It is the creation of a superior moviemaker who works eccentrically in the classical tradition.
One of the director's weakest films.
A romantic humanist with an infectious love for cinema, Truffaut introduced an effervescence, wit and a gift for brisk storytelling that's still unmatched.
This perverse love story just doesn't fly.
Approached as a caper film or a revenge-and-murder thriller, the movie is unsatisfying, but seen as a love story in which criminal activities are used to provide tension and an atmosphere of isolation, it is brilliantly unnerving
Truffaut demonstrates his ability to venture into Hitchcock's suspense/thriller territory while simultaneously delving into Buñuel's patented themes of sexual obsession
Eminently watchable.
It's the crown jewel of the Castro's Truffaut retrospective, beginning Friday, and for very good reason.
Audience Reviews for Mississippi Mermaid (La Sirène du Mississipi)
Super Reviewer
Critics seem to suggest that this is either Truffaut imitating Hitchcock, a unique love story, or both. For me, the Hitchcockian plot is easy to stay ahead of; the film doesn't offer many surprises, and when it attempts to, they seem contrived and forced. Likewise, the love story lacks any chemistry. I spent most of the film wondering what allure Julie has aside from Catherine Deneuve's rather attractive physique, and from her point of view, how is Jean-Paul not just another obsessive mark?
Also, I'm wondering about the comparisons of Truffaut to Hitchcock regarding this film from a directing point of view. Hitch's trademarks were his incredibly well-framed shots, which revealed and concealed with precision, and deft camera movement. Truffaut often sets the camera on a tripod and says, "Action." I think this works well in the Antonin Doinel films, which are more about character than plot, but it falls flat in this noir-ish snore.
However, I did like the ending, but for fear of spoiling, I shall not say why.
Overall, this film fails to meet any expectations -- high ones like Truffaut's reputation and its comparison to Hitchcock and low ones like what I'd expect any time I start to watch a film.
Super Reviewer
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Latest News on Mississippi Mermaid (La Sirène du Mississipi)
January 11, 2008:
Kim Newman on... Mississippi MermaidRT Obscura, the exclusive column by renowned critic Kim Newman, sees the writer plumbing the depths...
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Foreign Titles
- Mississippi Mermaid (La sirene du Mississippi) (DE)
- Mississippi Mermaid (La sirene du Mississippi) (UK)
