Mississippi Mermaid (1969)
"La sirène du Mississipi" (original title)

Louis Mahe is a tobacco planter at Reunion Island. He is waiting for Julie Roussel to marry her. He only knows her by mail. The woman that comes does not like the picture he got, but he ... See full summary »

Director:

François Truffaut

Writers:

Cornell Woolrich (based on the novel by), François Truffaut (adaptation)

Stars:

Jean-Paul Belmondo, Catherine Deneuve, Nelly Borgeaud

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Jean-Paul Belmondo	...	Louis Mahé
Catherine Deneuve	...	Julie Roussel / Marion Vergano
Nelly Borgeaud	...	Berthe
Martine Ferrière	...	Landlady
Marcel Berbert	...	Jardine
Yves Drouhet	...	Detective
Michel Bouquet	...	Comolli
Roland Thénot	...	Richard

Storyline

Louis Mahe is a tobacco planter at Reunion Island. He is waiting for Julie Roussel to marry her. He only knows her by mail. The woman that comes does not like the picture he got, but he marries her anyway. Soon, she flees with Louis' money. She was not the real Julie Roussel but Marion. Louis tries to find her... Another Truffaut's film about passion.

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Plot Keywords:

island | reunion island | reunion | antibes | love | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

GP

Details

Country:

France Italy

Language:

French

Release Date:

18 June 1969 (France)

Also Known As:

Mississippi Mermaid

Filming Locations:

Aix-en-Provence, Bouches-du-Rhône, France

Box Office

Budget:

$1,600,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$3,668 (USA) (10 July 2009)

Gross:

$26,893 (USA) (18 March 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Les Films du Carrosse, Les Productions Artistes Associés, Produzioni Associate Delphos

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original French title is spelled "La Sirène du Mississipi" (one P) in some sources, and "La Sirène du Mississippi" (two Ps) in other sources.

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Crazy Credits

Film ends with the english sentence "THE END" instead of the usual french word "FIN".

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Connections

Version of Original Sin (2001)

User Reviews

A noire thriller from Truffaut

Although Mississippi Mermaid was considered one of Truffaut's losers, it has charm and the personalities of the characters will stay with you. It's clearly better than its reputation. Said to be influenced by Hitchcock and then rendered in the Truffautian style, it is a little off the beaten track, and the coincidences are a little ridiculous. Nonetheless Catherine Deneuve is outstanding and strangely at home in a role considered by many to be out of character for her, as though Grace Kelly might play Bonnie in 'Bonnie and Clyde.'

This comes five years after Deneuve charmed audiences in The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964), and two years after her success in Belle de Jour (1967). She stars here as a skanky ex-home girl with a murderous heart. (Truffaut gives us a flashback to the dorm where they slept with the lights on and had masturbating contests.) For all her elegant beauty Deneuve does manage to look cheap and almost sleazy. In some ways she comes to life in this role more than in any other I've seen. Certainly I've never seen her sexier.

Co-star Jean-Paul Belmondo is engaging as a slightly sweet and naive tobacco farmer from Reunion Island (near Madagascar) who gets Deneuve as a mail order bride, she and her bad boyfriend having first dumped the real mail order bride overboard en route. If you've never seen Belmondo you should since he was a sensation in his prime, something like a French Marlon Brando.

(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!)