Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Mississippi Mermaid Blu-ray Movie Review

Sink or swim.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 4, 2015

Choosing a prospective mate from a personal ad can be risky business, as I can testify from personal experience. Years ago I made the probably questionable decision to answer a personal ad in a local newspaper, one that was made interesting for me since the woman mentioned that she had two tickets to see Ella Fitzgerald for a “first date.” Once I actually met the woman outside the concert hall, she divulged to me that she had literally just been released from a long stay at a mental hospital, and while she did have Ella tickets, and we did in fact traipse inside to attend the concert, she experienced an emotional meltdown during the performance that necessitated an early exit. You’d think I would have learned my lesson, but, no, several years later I answered another personal ad and—ended up marrying a wonderful woman who still at least claims to love me over two decades later. Like I said—risky. Mississippi Mermaid, one of the more confounding if weirdly charming films in François Truffaut’s oeuvre, starts out with some voiceovers detailing various “lonely hearts” advertising for a prospective mate, and then segues into the story of one such individual, a wealthy French guy named Louis Mahé who has in fact been preparing to greet a woman whom he “met” through just such a personal ad, and who is now excited to be able to really meet her face to face. Louis has only a sheaf of letters and a picture of his bride to be, and the woman appears to be a rather drab if reasonably pretty brunette. When Louis waits dockside for this woman to disembark, he’s surprised and ultimately a bit confounded when no one who looks like the picture traipses off the large ship. (The ship is named the Mississippi, which at least explains that element of this film's somewhat odd English title. The original French title of the film was La sirène du Mississipi, which is probably a bit more on point and less suggestive of a precursor to Splash). A few minutes later, almost by chance (and in a moment which Truffaut elides cinematically with a pan which almost seems to suggest everything might be a dream) he stumbles across a gorgeous blonde who claims she’s Louis’ expected spouse to be, Julie Roussel (Catherine Deneuve). A quick marriage ensues, but it turns out neither spouse has been entirely honest with the other, and a convoluted scheme unfolds which threatens Louis’ hoped for happily ever after.

Louis’ subterfuge is revealed early on when he confesses to being quite wealthy (something he hadn’t shared previously), but takes a back seat to Julie’s admission that she sent a photo of a homelier girl in order to test Louis’ true intentions (hey, if you looked like Catherine Deneuve, you’d be careful, too). Louis takes Julie at her word, though there are continuing clues that she may not have been entirely truthful, especially as the couple’s married life continues and little moments reveal some discrepancies between what Julie had shared in correspondence with Louis during their “courtship” phase and what she now professes to be the truth. (Minor spoilers follow, so those who want an ostensible surprise or two should skip the rest of this review.)

Things take an expected turn into more traditional mystery territory when a woman shows up claiming to be the sister of Julie Roussel and enters the story, at which point Julie promptly disappears, taking the bulk of Louis’ fortune with her. Berthe Roussel (Nelly Borgeaud) meets up with Louis and delivers the not exactly surprising information that “Julie” (meaning Deneuve) was not her sister, and that Berthe herself saw the real Julie board the Mississippi. A private investigator named Comolli (Michel Bouquet) is hired by the pair to find the fake Julie and (hopefully) Louis’ piles of cash.

Up to this point, Mississippi Mermaid plies somewhat familiar territory, albeit from Truffaut’s distinctive viewpoint. But the film is really more about obsession than it is about theft, and the bulk of this film details the odd “reunion” of Louis and Julie (whose real name turns out to be Marion), two desperate lovers who end up having to go on the lam for some patently contrived reasons. There are aspects of Mississippi Mermaid which will no doubt recall Vertigo for some viewers, and like Hitchcock’s initially underappreciated gem, this film is a somewhat laconic take on various tropes of both romantic and sexual codependence.

While there are logical gaps abounding in Mississippi Mermaid, there’s also an ineluctable dreamlike quality that makes the film quite fascinating on its own terms (something else that tends to remind of the similarly hallucinatory Vertigo). Belmondo and Deneuve are of course stunning to simply watch, two beautiful people playing less than beautiful characters, and their devolution into more sordid circumstances provides some unexpected emotional impact. The vagaries of love are never quite as they seem, or at least as some might hope, in many of Truffaut’s films, and Mississippi Mermaid, while problematic, is one of his more interesting examinations of the skirmishes between the sexes.

Mississippi Mermaid Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Mississippi Mermaid is presented on Blu-ray with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.35:1. Culled from the MGM/UA library, which typically tends to mean older masters, Mississippi Mermaid also has the look of having been sourced off of duplicate elements. While grain isn't quite as problematically pronounced or clumpy as one might expect from such sources, colors have faded, though some parts of the film, including some really ravishing outdoor shots, still offer some surprisingly stunning blues. The overall appearance here is decidedly on the soft side, with close-ups tending to fare best in terms of providing above average amounts of detail (see screenshot 1). Age related wear and tear is also in evidence, with quite a few dirt specks and the like dotting the presentation (take a deep breath as the film starts, for the opening few moments have some of the worst damage in this regard). All in all, this is a solid if unspectacular looking transfer, one which offers a reasonably good viewing experience of a relatively rarely seen Truffaut film.

Mississippi Mermaid Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Mississippi Mermaid's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio Mono track is nothing to write home (and/or to a prospective spouse) about, but it provides ample support for the film's dialogue and a rather enjoyable score by Antoine Duhamel. There are really no age related issues of any kind to report on this problem free if unambitious track.

Mississippi Mermaid Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Original Theatrical Trailer (480i; 1:35)


• MGM 90th Anniversary Trailer (1080p; 2:06)


• Isolated Score Track is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0.


• Audio Commentary features Twilight Time's Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman.

Mississippi Mermaid Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mississippi Mermaid takes some intriguing twists and turns, though truth be told it doesn't ever really stand up to much actual examination, for those inclined to think about such things after the film has ended. Belmondo and Deneuve are excellent in unusual roles, and if the mystery isn't all that convincing, the examination of two souls seemingly bound together by some inexorable force is quite compelling. Video quality here is a little spotty, and so fans of the film should probably peruse the screenshots accompanying this review to get a sense of how things look. Taken as a whole, Mississippi Mermaid comes Recommended.