Despite the silly-sounding title, I had such high hopes for Mr. Peabody and the Mermaid. William Powell, approaching fifty and unhappy about reaching middle-age, falls in love with a mermaid, Ann Blyth. I thought it was going to be the predecessor of Splash, which it was, and I thought it was going to be absolutely darling, which it mostly was. While most of the movie is sweet and funny, there are little hints along the way, including the music during the opening credits, that show the movie might have a dramatic card up its sleeve.
The opening scene shows Bill being dragged to a therapist's office by his wife, Irene Hervey, and reluctantly he tells his story. Since the story is told in a flashback, it should be clear that Bill has not left his wife and married his mermaid, so don't expect a direct copy of Splash. Ann Blyth is so darling, and she and Bill Powell are very sweet together. She's mute, but she learns to understand what he says to her, so she pouts and splashes water with her tail when she's angry, and she wraps her arms around him and puckers her lips when he flatters her with compliments. Bill teaches her how to kiss, and he even buys her a bikini top so the camera doesn't have to cleverly hide her nakedness. You can imagine how hilarious and awkward it is when he walks into a ladies' lingerie shop and asks for "just the top" of a bathing suit.
There are also some very impressive underwater sequences where the audience is treated to seeing Ann swim in her mermaid tail and play in her underwater grotto. She's so beautiful and adorable in this movie, it's impossible to describe. If you want to see what's easily her cutest movie, rent this fantasy.
The opening scene shows Bill being dragged to a therapist's office by his wife, Irene Hervey, and reluctantly he tells his story. Since the story is told in a flashback, it should be clear that Bill has not left his wife and married his mermaid, so don't expect a direct copy of Splash. Ann Blyth is so darling, and she and Bill Powell are very sweet together. She's mute, but she learns to understand what he says to her, so she pouts and splashes water with her tail when she's angry, and she wraps her arms around him and puckers her lips when he flatters her with compliments. Bill teaches her how to kiss, and he even buys her a bikini top so the camera doesn't have to cleverly hide her nakedness. You can imagine how hilarious and awkward it is when he walks into a ladies' lingerie shop and asks for "just the top" of a bathing suit.
There are also some very impressive underwater sequences where the audience is treated to seeing Ann swim in her mermaid tail and play in her underwater grotto. She's so beautiful and adorable in this movie, it's impossible to describe. If you want to see what's easily her cutest movie, rent this fantasy.