Night Tide (1961)

A young sailor falls in love with a mysterious woman, performing as a mermaid at the local carnival. He soon comes to suspect the girl might be a real mermaid, who draws men to a watery death during the full moon.

Director:

Curtis Harrington

Writers:

Curtis Harrington (screenplay), Curtis Harrington (short story)

Stars:

Dennis Hopper, Linda Lawson, Gavin Muir

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Dennis Hopper	...	Johnny Drake
Linda Lawson	...	Mora
Gavin Muir	...	Capt. Samuel Murdock
Luana Anders	...	Ellen Sands
Marjorie Eaton	...	Madame Romanovitch
Tom Dillon	...	Merry-Go-Round Operator - Ellen's Grandfather
H.E. West	...	Lt. Henderson
Ben Roseman	...	Bruno
Marjorie Cameron	...	Water Witch (as Cameron)

Storyline

On leave in a shore side town, Johnny becomes interested in a young dark haired woman. They meet and he learns that she plays a mermaid in the local carnival. After strange occurrences, Johnny begins to believe that she may actually be a real mermaid that habitually kills during the cycle of the full moon.

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Plot Keywords:

sea | beach | funfair | underwater scene | jazz | 

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Taglines:

Was she Human?

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Greek

Release Date:

17 September 1965 (Mexico)

Also Known As:

Girl from Beneath the Sea

Filming Locations:

Ocean Park Pier, Santa Monica, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Phoenix Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Susan Harrison, a friend of writer/director Curtis Harrington, was slated to play Mora but her then-boyfriend, Joël Colin, intervened and insisted she be offered a higher salary than the budget allowed.

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Goofs

As Johnny and Mora arrive at the dive spot in the motor boat, a medium camera shot shows Mora suited up with dive tank and dive mask on her head. The shot then switches to a close up, but now we see Mora has no dive mask on, and in fact, we see Johnny holding both his and Mora's masks in his hands.

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Quotes

Mora: Yes, I love the sea most of all. But I'm afraid of it, too.
Johnny Drake: I guess we're all a little afraid of what we love.

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Crazy Credits

'And so, all the night tide, I lie down by the side of my darling - my darling - my life and my bride, in her sepulchre there by the sea, in her tomb by the sounding sea.' Edgar Allen Poe (from 'Annabel Lee')

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Connections

Referenced in Psycho's Sister: Making 'The Name of the Game Is Kill' (2013)

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Soundtracks

The Tell Tale Harp
Written by David Raksin

User Reviews

Myth and mystery

Though it is a small production, it is interesting in the way it deals with the myth and mystery of the sea and its lore. We are purposely given sketchy information about the carnival mermaid who may in fact be a siren luring the lonely sailor nearly to his doom.

A very young Hopper plays the sailor, and Lawson is sufficiently enchanting to make us believe that she is more than just a girl wearing a fake fishtail. The film has a TWILIGHT ZONE quality to it, leaving the viewer wondering at the end.