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Fantasy romantic film

The Little Mermaid (1976): Cast & Plot

The Little Mermaid (1976) movie poster

The Little Mermaid is a 1976 fantasy romantic film directed by Karel Kachyňa, starring Miroslava Šafránková as The Little Mermaid, Marie Rosůlková and Jan J. Vágner. It runs 1 hour 24 minutes.

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Read the plot summary
The Little Mermaid (1976) movie poster
Released
Runtime
1h 24m (84 min)
Director
Karel Kachyňa
Genres
Fantasy , Romance
Original language
Czech
Studio
Filmové studio Barrandov
After the credits
No No extra scene
The story

What Is The Little Mermaid About?

The premise of The Little Mermaid without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.

A mermaid saves a drowning prince and falls for him. Desperate to live on land, she trades her enchanting voice to an evil sorceress for human legs. The prince, bewitched by her beauty, still believes a mysterious princess rescued him on the beach, sparking a tragic misunderstanding that even the sea‑king cannot avert.

The Little Mermaid Themes & Keywords

· 50 tags
  • female protagonist
  • prince
  • mermaid as protagonist
  • merman
  • 19th century literature on screen
  • forbidden love
  • loss of voice
  • underwater
  • turned into a human
  • love interest
  • mute girl
  • merpeople
+38 more
  • human mermaid love
  • aquatic humanoid
  • interspecies romance
  • human mermaid relationship
  • mermaid kingdom
  • fairy tale fantasy
  • self sacrifice
  • based on hans christian andersen story
  • mermaid princess
  • tragic romance
  • mermaid
  • love
  • sea
  • psychotronic film
  • literature on screen
  • european literature on screen
  • danish literature on screen
  • f rated
  • multiverse
  • fantasy literature on screen
  • children's literature on screen
  • danish children's literature on screen
  • danish fantasy literature on screen
  • the little mermaid character
  • underwater scene
  • father daughter relationship
  • sea witch
  • drowning
  • falling in love with a mermaid
  • rescue from drowning
  • sea king
  • mute
  • costume drama
  • little mermaid
  • male female relationship
  • dark romanticism
  • female nudity
  • foreign language adaptation
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Cast & crew

The Little Mermaid Cast & Characters

Miroslava Šafránková leads the cast as The Little Mermaid, with Marie Rosůlková as Grandmother and Jan J. Vágner as Prince of the Sea of the Setting Sun. Directed by Karel Kachyňa; 57 actors are credited in all.

Also Starring in The Little Mermaid

· 53 more
Show all 57 cast members
From the director

More from Karel Kachyňa

More films directed by Karel Kachyňa: Fany, The Last Butterfly, Appeal to Your Love and Forbidden Dreams.

Full filmography
Plot

The Little Mermaid Plot Summary

What happens in The Little Mermaid from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 12 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 2-minute read.

Spoilers ahead

On her birthday, the little mermaid, Miroslava Šafránková, daughter of the King of the Seas, longs to glimpse the world above the waves. Her grandmother, Marie Rosůlková, tells her stories of the surface and warns her never to kiss a human.

During the celebration, she sees a prince, Jan J. Vágner, aboard a ship that sinks in a violent storm. She dives to his aid, saving him and carrying him to the shore, where the prince is discovered by a young princess, Libuše Šafránková who believes she was the one who saved him.

Full summary

The whole story of The Little Mermaid, scene by scene

Read the full summary
Quiz

How Well Do You Know The Little Mermaid?

10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.

Question 1 of 10

  1. Question 1: not answered
  2. Question 2: not answered
  3. Question 3: not answered
  4. Question 4: not answered
  5. Question 5: not answered
  6. Question 6: not answered
  7. Question 7: not answered
  8. Question 8: not answered
  9. Question 9: not answered
  10. Question 10: not answered

What does the little mermaid trade to the sea witch in exchange for legs?
Details

The Little Mermaid Also Known As

13 alternative titles, including “Die kleine Seejungfrau” and “大海的女儿”.

Also known as
  • Die kleine Seejungfrau
  • 大海的女儿
  • A Pequena Sereia
  • Русалочка
  • Mała syrenka
  • La sirenita
  • 人魚姫
  • La piccola ninfa di mare
  • Die kleine Meerjungfrau
  • 海的女儿
  • A kis hableány
  • Malá morská víla
+1 more
  • La Petite Sirène

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FAQ

The Little Mermaid FAQ: Cast, Runtime & Release Date

Runtime, release date, director, cast, post-credit scenes and language of The Little Mermaid, each answered in a sentence.

How long is The Little Mermaid?

The Little Mermaid runs 1 hour 24 minutes (84 minutes).

When was The Little Mermaid released?

The Little Mermaid was released on November 12, 1976.

Who directed The Little Mermaid?

The Little Mermaid was directed by Karel Kachyňa.

More films by Karel Kachyňa

Who is in the cast of The Little Mermaid?

The Little Mermaid stars Miroslava Šafránková as The Little Mermaid, Marie Rosůlková as Grandmother and Jan J. Vágner as Prince of the Sea of the Setting Sun, among 57 credited actors.

Does The Little Mermaid have a post-credit scene?

No. The Little Mermaid has no extra scene during or after the credits.

What language is The Little Mermaid in?

The original language of The Little Mermaid is Czech.

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