Wasser - Der Film

The writers Clement / LaFrenais (The Commitments / Still Crazy) have made a funny satire of the end of the british colonialism in the Thatcher-Era (2 years after the Falkland Conflict) and about TV and commerce.

Michael Caine gives a great performance as the Gouvernor of the island.

The rest of the cast is extraordinary, especially the comedian Billy Connolly (Mrs. Brown / Still Crazy) as leader of the 2-Men- Guerilla-Group of the island.

The film contains some good reggae-songs of the 80´s Reggae-Pop-Grandmaster Eddy Grant and some others.

A tip for all, who wanna have sun & fun for 100 minutes !

(Translated by my sister Antonia)

A mildly amusing comedy from the double act of Clement/La Frenais, that has pretensions to some kind of political satire, but isn't nearly clever enough, despite allusions to the Falklands War, and plenty of topical material ripe for parody. It is, however, occasionally very funny, with a cast wringing every laugh from a script that doesn't deserve them, and all manner of stereotypes, including some hilarious observations of the Brits themselves. You can't really go wrong with a supporting cast like this, although Caine seems out of his depth, mugging his way through, ill at ease with his unnatural comic timing. It is certainly worth a look, if only because it's the only place you're likely to see Maureen Lipman's impersonation of Margaret Thatcher, and Billy Connolly singing, with George, Ringo, and Eric Clapton as the backing band.

Michael Caine is a notoriously prolific actor, the downside of that being that for all his acclaim he has a reputation for being in as many bad films as good. One that many critics are quick to cite as one of the worst is "Water". That's not entirely fair, for while it is certainly not one of the high points of Caine's career or a resounding success it has an odd sort of charm which makes it somewhat endearing. The concept alone is a large part of the film's appeal; rarely have we seen a big screen satire with the bravado to take on colonialism. The script is by legendary Britcom writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and while it is not up to the standard of the best of their television work, it contains many amusing moments. The main problem with the film is that it has no real momentum. The plot often moves at a sluggish pace, and some scenes feel like they add nothing to the film and could have easily been dropped. What ultimately saves the film is the performance of Leonard Rossiter, in his last film role before his untimely death. Whilst the character of Sir Malcolm Leveridge offers little challenge to Rigsby or Reginald Perrin, Rossiter still provides a great number of laughs and is the best reason to see the film.

The film's soundtrack is also very enjoyable, in particular a great title track from Eddy Grant.

This is a really fun movie. It has great actors and the plot, political references, and music make it worth a look. Sometimes movies just need to be fun.

Michael Caine looks like he is having a good time making this movie and the other actors meld in with his actions. Brenda Vaccaro and Leonard Rossiter created characters that were almost embarrassing to watch. They were great.

Whoever cast Billy Connoly and Jimmie Walker was a genius. Fred Gwynne will be remembered as a Munster, but I think this was one of his great roles.

I am quite disappointed with the average for this film. I found it to be one of the funniest films I have ever seen. The cast is superb and the script, although not one of the best written, is filled with humor that was was made even better by the acting. It was filmed on the island of St. Lucia. It's a story of a company drilling for oil and accidently discovers mineral water, a substance that is even more valuable than oil. But it is important to keep it a secret. Jimmie Walker, who I don't particularly like, plays the part of a radio dj and does it wonderfully. Michael Caine and Brenda Vaccaro are fabulous as is everyone else. Please give this film a chance. I think it might be one of those little surprises that come along every once in a while.