The Seventh Stream

...On a much smaller and more manageable scale. It is so beautiful to see and hear that one can almost smell the salt air. Saffron Burrows gives a surprisingly subtle and nuanced performance, easily the equal of her more experienced cast members. The weakest offering was that on whom the entire enterprise pivots, Scott Glenn, playing Owen Quinn. Here, a range of emotion was require that he did not seem to be able to muster. But the rest of the production was so compelling as to make the whole unsinkable. As for being able to suspend disbelief well enough to entertain the essential fantasy; remember that this story takes place in the land of leprechauns before the coming of such wonders as the horseless carriage!

At first, I thought this film was going to be a shameless copy of "The Secret of Roan Inish" but I'm glad I rode out the first few minutes of doubt. "The Seventh Stream" takes a different turn and becomes a satisfying little film in its own right. Particularly effective are the performances: Scott Glenn (who's getting to resemble John Hurt in his mature years) is moving as the lonely and dour widower Quinn, and Saffron Burrows is excellent as the selkie Mairead. Ms. Burrows is perfect for the role -- she's tall, stunning and has an unearthly quality about her that serves very well. Fiona Shaw, as always, is excellent as the unrequited admirer of Quinn.

The film is also worth watching for the gorgeous west of Ireland scenery. The brooding and starkly beautiful landscape, accompanied by the understated musical score, create a distinctly Celtic mood.

If you are looking for another Hollywood action film with a fast-paced plot, wild characters and a big bang at the end, this isn't that movie. If you want something different, a little slower paced with a thoughtful plot, a wee bit of mystery and a beautiful seaside setting, this may be for you. I found it interesting that the majority of the cast consisted of the residents of this fishing village by the sea. It's a tale of lost love, redemption and belief in a legend that ultimately leads to belief in the human heart and spirit. James Welch Henderson Arkansas 9/10/21.

"The Seventh Stream" is beautifully filmed with a deeply romantic score and a story comes from the same vein of Irish folklore that inspired 1994's "Secret of Roan Inish," another good family movie but not, I think, quite as atmospheric or nearly as moving as "The Seventh Stream." Both films are based on the legend of the selkies - gray seals who sometimes take human form, come ashore and interact with humans. The production values are very superior for a made-for-cable flick.

Saffron Burrows is nothing short of remarkable as the seal-woman. Viewers drugged by the over-the-top acting styles of so many movies may find her performance too subdued, too quiet, but that's their problem. Some kind of emotion is constantly flickering across her face, which is amazingly expressive. She's by turns mysterious, cold, curious, sultry, beautiful, vulnerable, weird - everything you'd expect to see in a seal-girl.

In a less fascinating role, Scott Glenn too is convincing and sympathetic as the hardscrabble middle-aged fisherman to whom the selkie turns for help. There's a lot of talk about the human heart, none of it sappy. Aside from one or two minor cultural goofs that few will care about, the film depicts pretty plausibly life in an Irish fishing village a hundred years ago.

There are also one or two minor directorial lapses. When fate deals unkindly with one of the characters, he cries out "Nooooooooooooooo!" in ultra slow-mo. Just like in The Simpsons and elsewhere. But the embarrassing moments take up about two minutes in total, and none is as bad as that.The rest of the film could hardly be improved on as a serious fairy tale for the whole family, unless your family is deeply into pro wrestling and stuff like that.

One of the most moving fantasy films I've seen, definitely not sugary or maudlin, and not oozing with CGI.

Check it out! I bet they were going to call it originally "The Seventh Seal," but found out that title was taken.

I am not exactly the major expert on Irish folklore but I saw this movie simply because I love Scott Glenn's acting and while he was good as usual the movie was so-so. Why? Let's see.

Owen Quinn (Glenn) is an Irish fisherman that remained widow - when, it's not told but it must have been recent - that one day during a fishing trip notices something out of this world... a seal turning into a gorgeous woman named Mairead (Saffron Burrows), and as you might guess, Quinn tries his way with Mairead. As life goes on in the Irish village, Quinn's relationship with Mairead starts going creaky and eventually leave. When she returns on the beach Quinn notices lots of seals going to the beach and morphing into women, and as a Reverend told him before in the movie there was a population of seals that morphed into humans that just waited the right stream for doing so.

While the concept was interesting the execution was odd because it could never happen that a seal can be turned into human. I know, it's the retelling of a legend but I simply couldn't suspend disbelief. For the rest, Glenn as usual did his best with the performance and Burrows was convincing up until she became cranky and wanted to return to the beach only for morphing into a seal.

Overall, a movie that in the end would appeal more to Irish folks than non-Irish one like me (I am Italian) and saved by the leads' performances.