《天涯海角》

    The magic of folklore forms the basis of this Irish tale by writer-director John Sayles. Adapted* from the book “Secret of the Ron Mor Skerry,” the 1940s story is told from the point of view of Fiona (Jeni Courtney).

    One day, many years ago, an ancestor* of Fiona spied a beautiful creature sunning by the sea. She was both woman and seal*. We would call her a mermaid, but on the western coast of Ireland such creatures were known as Selkies.

    The ancestor trapped the creature and married her, and they had children together and lived happily, although she seemed to long for the sea. One day she learned where her husband had hidden her sealskin, up under the roof, and she put it back on, and returned to the sea.

    Fiona, who is around 12, is told this story by a relative. It is not told as a fairy tale but as an account* of family history, to be taken quite seriously.

    The year is about 1946. Fiona’s mother has died, and her father can barely be budged* from his mourning* in the pub.

    She is sent to live with her grandparents, on a sea coast across from the island of Roan Inish, where the whole family once lived.

    There she learns the story of her little brother Jamie, whose cradle* was carried off by the waves. And there, with her grandparents and her cousin Eamon (Richard Sheridan), she first explores Roan Inish, which means, in Gaelic, “island of the seals.”

    On Roan Inish, the girl sees a child’s footprint. Then she sees the child — Jamie — running on the sand. She calls to him, but he gets back into his cradle, which is borne out to sea by friendly seals. Of course it is hard to convince* grown-ups of what she has seen.

    In the meantime, her grandparents face eviction* from their cottage, which is to be sold to rich folks from the city. They may have to move inland. Can Fiona and Eamon restore the family’s old cottages on Roan Inish? Can she reclaim Jamie from the sea?(SD-Agencies)