A young sailor falls in love with a mysterious woman performing as a mermaid on the local pier. As they become entwined, he comes to suspect the woman might be a real mermaid who lures men to a watery death during the full moon. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with The Film Foundation in 2007.
A stunning, atmospheric, darkly beautiful film (noir). It's a Val Lewton-esque romance tinged with horror, set in a wonderfully spooky seaside town. It's a film about feeling alone, and then falling into anything, no matter how dangerous, that makes you feel like you're wanted. Curtis Harrington deserves to be a household name.
"Because I feel the seawater in my veins. Because I listen to the roar of the sea and it speaks to me like a mother's voice. The tide pulls at my heart, and the face of the moon fills my soul with a strange longing."
