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In the 2009 film Ondine, directed by Neil Jordan, the twist ending is the deconstruction of the fairy tale, where the supernatural elements are revealed to have a gritty, realistic, and criminal explanation.
Throughout the film, the protagonist Syracuse (Colin Farrell) and his daughter Annie believe that the woman he pulled from his fishing net, Ondine, is a selkie—a mythological seal-woman who can shed her skin to become human. Annie is convinced that Ondine has come to grant them luck and health.
The twist reveals the following specific details:
Ondine is not a selkie; she is a human woman named Johanna, originally from Romania. She was a "drug mule" involved in a smuggling operation. When she was found in the net, she hadn't fallen from the heavens or emerged from the seal kingdom; she had jumped overboard from a ship to escape after a drug run went wrong.
Earlier in the film, Annie finds what she believes is Ondine’s "selkie skin" buried in the ground (according to myth, if you hide a selkie’s skin, they cannot return to the sea). The twist reveal shows that the "skin" was actually a waterproof bag containing a large cache of heroin. Ondine had buried the drugs to hide them from both the police and her former associates.
The mysterious, dark-haired man seen lurking around the village—whom Annie believes is a vengeful selkie husband coming to take Ondine back to the sea—is actually Vlad, Ondine’s violent former boyfriend and accomplice in the drug smuggling ring. He tracked her down to retrieve the stolen heroin.
The "magical" luck Syracuse experienced (catching an abundance of fish whenever Ondine sang) is grounded in reality. Ondine’s singing was a way to pass the time, and the bountiful catches were largely coincidental or due to her assisting him in locations where she knew the water was deep and the current was right (based on her experience on smuggling boats).
The film concludes with a violent confrontation. Vlad attempts to reclaim the drugs and threatens Syracuse and Annie. In the struggle, Vlad falls into the water and drowns—ironically "returning to the sea" in a way that mirrors the myth, but through death.
Ondine faces deportation because she is an illegal immigrant with a criminal past, but the film ends on a hopeful note: Syracuse helps her stay in Ireland, and they choose to live a life based on their real love for one another rather than the myth of the selkie.
The summary omits that Syracuse marries Ondine to keep her in the country. This is the specific resolution to the deportation threat and thematically important.
The summary says Vlad 'falls', but Ondine pushes/trips him, which is a significant character moment (rejecting her past/abuser).
In the film Ondine, the twist is that the titular character is not a mythological selkie, but a Romanian drug mule named Ioana (or Johanna). The 'seal skin' Annie believes she buried is actually a backpack containing heroin. The 'selkie husband' pursuing her is Vladic, her drug dealer and boyfriend. The fishing luck Syracuse experiences is revealed to be coincidence (or left ambiguous), not the result of magic or smuggling knowledge. In the end, Ondine pushes Vladic overboard (where he drowns), and Syracuse marries her to prevent her deportation.