SummaryA young man is reunited with a mermaid who saves him from drowning as a boy and falls in love not knowing who/what she is.
Directed By:Ron Howard
Written By:Brian Grazer, Bruce Jay Friedman, Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel
Splash
Metascore
Generally Favorable
71
User score
Generally Favorable
6.8
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
71
80% Positive
12 Reviews
12 Reviews
7% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
13% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
100
It is a triumph for director Ron Howard, underwater photographer Jordan Klein, the writers and even the guy who made Hannah's latex tail (Robert Short). And it's surely the stairway to superstardom for costar John Candy and the lovely leading nyad. Splash, a departure for struggling Disney Studio, is as irresistible as the siren's song. [09 Mar 1984, p.23]
80
Ron Howard, directing from a witty script by Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel and Bruce Jay Friedman, has fashioned an enchanting piece of fluff -- a romantic comedy that is truly romantic and truly comic, a deft blend of hip satire and fairy-tale charm. Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah have a lot to do with that charm. [12 Mar 1984, p.89]
User score
Generally Favorable
6.8
62% Positive
24 Ratings
24 Ratings
36% Mixed
14 Ratings
14 Ratings
3% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
May 13, 2020
9
This film is one of the first cinema works of Tom Hanks' career, and is perhaps one of the most interesting comedies in which he entered. In fact, among the endless list of romantic comedies of the 1980s, it is one that has stood the test of time. The story tells how a mermaid falls in love with a young man, how she finds him again in adulthood, and how they struggle to be together, despite the fact that she is different and the army want to capture and study her. Nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, it has charm. The work of all involved was well harmonized for a good final product. Despite using a mythological being that doesn't exist, the film's credibility is not an issue. The film intends to use fantasy to make audiences dream, and it does it very well. Tom Hanks was young, but his excellent work here reveals talent and a promising future that, in fact, came to happen. Daryl Hannah was a beautiful woman, truly attractive and showy, and she knew how to use that in her character. She steals the spotlight whenever she appears on scene. It is curious how their careers flowed so differently, with Hanks achieving **** and Hannah always keeping a low profile. Eugene Levy and John Candy also did well and ensure the comical moments with professionalism and effectiveness. Ron Howard is a good director and has given a lot of proofs of professionalism and competence to this day. In this film, the painstaking way in which he directed the cast and how he takes advantage of New York's landscapes and scenery is palpable. Cinematography is quite regular, but makes good use of underwater scenes, although I do not believe that the waters of New York can have the colours and life that we see here, and that they look more like the warm waters of the Caribbean or the coast of Australia . The set of the sunken ship is also a mistake and could never be real, but it is a common thing when you imagine old shipwrecks. Finally, a word of praise and appreciation for the song used in the final part of the film, in the final credits, which are one of the most beautiful parts of the entire film. I am not a fan of romantic comedies, even though I know how to enjoy them. This film, however, is one of those that I have seen several times since I was a child. I think he has aged well and I am sure we will continue to see him for a few more years.
80
Before Director Ron Howard and his gargle of writers (Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel and Bruce Jay Friedman) arrange a satisfactorily romantic ending for their odd couple, they also manage to satirize everything from presidential politics to daytime television. They are a jostling, busily observant, fundamentally good-natured crew, and audiences are well advised to take a plunge on Splash.
80
The movie that really showed Tom Hanks' promise as a deliverer of great comedy and heart-warming pathos.
75
Splash is funny and gentle and quite entertaining, and there isn't a cynical moment in it. And unlikely as this may sound, Splash suggests that we had better keep an eye on Ron Howard, director. He is something special, too. [12 Mar 1984, p.C6]
50
This mild 1984 comedy about a mermaid (Daryl Hannah) who falls in love with a New York City yuppie (Tom Hanks) isn't at all hard to take (John Candy, in a supporting role, is hilarious and original, and Hannah has a pleasant naive charm), but its appeal is based almost entirely on regression—a thematic regression to infancy (now endemic to the American cinema) and a stylistic regression to the most lulling kind of TV blandness. No wonder it's relaxing: it's a lullaby.
38
There is a funny movie lurking at the edges of Splash, and sometimes it even sneaks on screen and makes us smile. It's too bad the relentlessly conventional minds that made this movie couldn't have made the leap from sitcom to comedy.
Sep 13, 2024
6
Tom Hanks breaks out in this light, charming, modestly funny fish-out-of-water comedy (har har) about a man's lifelong encounters with a lustily enamored mermaid. It can be tremendously naïve at times, and the plot is about as telegraphed as they come, but there's something intangible about this picture that manages to gloss over many of those shortcomings. The central performance of Hanks is key, working as the plucky everyman he'd embody in most of his early repertoire, though this time it's dosed with a few fits of sharply possessive, unsettling anger. Maybe those shades just look bad in retrospect, as the film's a full generation old now, but it's tough not to cringe at such puzzling spots in the modern climate. I think the humor falls into a similar trap, in that it was probably more relevant at the time than it is today. A handful of comedies from the same era still serve as timeless examples of great humor (Ghostbusters, also released in 1984, springs to mind), and though a few of its gags and one-liners still connect, Splash isn't even in that ballpark after thirty years on the shelf. Hanks's easy rapport with John Candy is worth celebrating, though, and Daryl Hannah is positively breathtaking as the sweet, innocent, fish-tailed beauty at the center of all the action. Simple, straight entertainment that's begun to fade as it grows older.
Apr 24, 2020
6
SPLASH is a 1984 comedy, romance, fantasy film directed by Ron Howard and stars Tom Hanks, Eugene Levy, Daryl Hannah and John Candy.... Tom Hanks in Splash plays some guy named Allen who as a kid saw a child mermaid in the water and I think John Candy played his brother in the film but not 100% certain. Ever since his childhood ordeal he has never forgotten it and wishes for true love when he's adult age (a fully grown man) but nobody wants him so downs his sorrows in drink and alcohol. One day or night he goes to Cape Cod because he feels happy there yet he doesn't know why but after an accident he nearly drowns but is rescued. Waking up on dry land he sees a naked woman who swims away and that's the end until she tracks him down due to him leaving his wallet or something in the water with his home address on it. Later Tom Hanks finds out the lady is a mermaid yet he was in love with her and feels embarrassed and stupid. The ending of the film is a happy ending but you'll just have to see it to find out the ending but Splash is a good film but it has it's flaws and faults so I can't give it a 10 rating. The main problem with Splash is though even funny at times the larger than life John Candy as Freddie is also very annoying and acts like he's in a completely different film to everyone else because he's too over the top and loud. The second problem is Eugene Levy is a bit pathetic but besides that this film is okay. Not great but okay.
Production Company:
- Touchstone Films
Release Date:Mar 9, 1984
Duration:1 h 51 m
Rating:PG
Tagline:From the first laugh, you'll be hooked!
Awards
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Nomination
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Nomination
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
• 1 Win & 5 Nominations
