The Mermaid (2016) Review

Disclaimer: Contains spoilers!

Plot Summary: A mermaid tries to kill the businessman responsible for destroying her home and people but falls in love with him instead.

Review: So "The Mermaid" is the most successful Chinese movie of all time...which is a bit shocking to me. I had heard this was supposed to be a (ugh, I hate to say the word) romcom, however, it's severely lacking in the romantic avenue. Luckily, the comedic aspects were strong and salvage most of the film as a whole. In fact, the sheer, over the top nature of the characters and situations worked better than I would have imagined. I especially enjoyed the overacting from the male lead, Liu Xuan, played by Chao Deng, who is constantly screaming his dialogue; this just made me laugh for whatever, strange reason. Of course, I can't ignore the mermaid herself, played by Yun Lin, and the villain, played by Yuqi Zhang. Both are very attractive...though, Ms. Lin has some serious fucking shark teeth going on!

Yun Lin as Shan, the mermaid.

Yuqi Zhang as the villain, Ruolan.

The Good: As previously stated, the comedic elements are done well. We get some next level zany antics with emphasis on randomness. You aren't meant to expect characters to react the way they do which helps the final impression of the film. The overacting also enhances this bizarre comedy style rather than hindering it. Sure, not every joke or gag succeeds, yet, there are more hits than misses overall. Not everyone will be as engaged as I was in this regard, but the comedic style should be applicable enough for most audiences to at least get a chuckle or two out of 'em. As such, I will give the actors credit for embracing the shenanigans head-on. This was Ms. Lin's first starring role, and I was impressed she was able to commit to the role so thoroughly. As such, the Shan character is presented as incredibly sweet and innocent that it's a shame they didn't play the romance aspects straightforwardly. Nevertheless, some cute babes always spice up a movie especially when the background chickadees are cute too.

The Bad: The special effects are HORRENDOUS! For the love of fuck, some of the scenes here are downright embarrassing. Come on...the budget was decent too so there is no excuse to look this bad! The other, huge flaw is that, honestly, the story would have simply been better if the material were taken seriously. A meaningful, dramatic love story could have been applied to the film quite easily, and it would have worked significantly better than what we got. As I mentioned, the Shan character is lovable and her interactions with Liu Xuan could have had great depth in the right hands. This wasted potential becomes more noticeable at the end when the film suddenly transforms into an action movie out of nowhere. The abrupt tonal shift was surprising considering the lighthearted presentation up to that point. This just made me more annoyed that the filmmakers didn't pursue a serious film from the onset. Even that ending, where it was semi-implied that Liu Xuan was watching the waters to find Shan would have been infinitely better if they didn't then show her seconds later, ruining any kind of dramatic tension. Eh...I guess I am faulting a film for not being how I'd want it, but, oh well, it's still wasted potential I can't ignore.

All in all, "The Mermaid" is a terrible romance but a successful comedy. If you were hoping for something serious then look elsewhere. However, if you like over the top characters and hijinks of the highest order, this might be a comedy for you. I'm still not sure how this became the monstrous success it became, but, then again, look at the success of garbage like "Titanic." I want to recommend checking this out for yourself just to see what the fuss is about, but, with those horrific effects, I can't give this a full-fledged recommendation, that's for sure. However, if you're intrigued by the story, just keep in mind what genre this actually is and go from there.

Notable Moment: When some lackey is just trying to say hi to Liu Xuan and he tells him to go to hell. Amusingly random. Also, shortly after, when more goons just started rolling on the floor for no reason was humorous.

Final Rating: 6/10