Official Mermaid Legend synopsis from Third Window Films: Celebrating its 40th anniversary, yet receiving its very first ever release internationally, Toshiharu Ikeda (Evil Dead Trap) brings us a beautiful and bloody revenge film.
In Mermaid Legend, Migiwa (Mari Shirato, who does a fine job heading up an impressive cast) is an abalone diver who works with her husband Keisuke (Jun Ito). When Keisuke witnesses the killing of a landowner who doesn’t want to give in to a shady group trying to build a nuclear power plant under the guise of constructing an amusement park, he and Migiwa try to find evidence of the murder in the body of water where they fish. In a suspenseful scene, Migiwa signals her husband to pull her rope so she can come up for air, but instead his corpse floats down past her.
Migiwa finds herself framed for the murder of her husband, and she doesn’t plan to sit idly by to become the victim of the villainous forces that include yakuza members, father-and-son business owner bigwigs (Yoshiro Aoki and Kentaro Shimizu, respectively), and local politicians who stand to strike it rich. Determined to exact revenge for Keisuke’s murder, she has to endure sexual assaults and isolation on a small island known for its brothels before she sets out on her violent task.
Mermaid Legend doesn’t offer much in the way of big surprises to modern-day viewers, considering the numerous females-seeking-revenge genre movies that have been made since the film’s 1984 premiere, but aficionados of the subgenre should certainly find plenty to keep them on the edge of their seats, especially during the long, crimson-soaked payoff in the third act. If you have ever watched 1970s-era Japanese samurai films where blood sprays in profuse amounts rather than merely flows, you have an idea of what you are in for with Mermaid Legend. Fans of the cinematic red stuff will not be disappointed in the amount shown. Director Toshiharu Ikeda deftly sets up the protagonist couple’s relationship, the baddies’ schemes, and the several reasons for revenge and then delivers a riveting third act.
Without getting into spoiler territory, suffice it to say that Mermaid Legend is open to interpretation as either a straight-ahead revenge thriller or one with supernatural elements. It is absolutely worth a watch, and seeing which reading you choose to take is an added bonus.
Third Window Films presents Mermaid Legend as part of the third set in its “Directors Company Collection,” a series of films from the legendary 1980s Japanese production company, all presented with brand new digital restorations. Mermaid Legend is available from February 17, 2025. For information regarding ordering, visit https://shop.terracottadistribution.com/collections/directors-company
Warning: Trailer is NSFW!
