Mein Freund, der Wasserdrache

I saw this film this afternoon with my partner. I agree with other posters that the opening modern day scene in the pub, setting up the narrator, felt forced and false. Otherwise, what a wonderful film this was! It's a real "coming of age" story of an introverted young boy, missing his dad (off to war) terribly, and the events that help him come out of his shell and begin to interact with others. The CGI water horse was totally convincing, from newborn baby just out of the egg to full-blown adulthood. It really had a personality. The actors were convincing in their roles, too. My partner and I were brought almost to tears, in a good way, by some scenes. The ending, which I will not reveal, brought the tale full circle beautifully. If not for the jarring narrator scenes, I would have rated this film higher than I did.

CGI—of course: You can't depict the Loch Ness monster with just the putative photo of the famous myth. But after you accept the clever graphics, The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep is just plain ol' good story telling, fit for pre-adolescent kids and their young-at-heart parents.

Narrator Brian Cox (his character is not identified) tells of WWII era in Scotland at the famous loch, where young Angus MacMorrow finds an egg at the shore and nurtures the lovable monster until he has to go to the loch to survive. The Scottish regiment occupying the home and the new handyman, Lewis Mowbray (Ben Chaplin), complicate life and endanger the elusive monster. Although the usual clueless mom (Emily Watson) and dangerous thugs are here to further the horror genre staples, the challenges Angus faces are instructive about the collision of reality and fantasy for an adolescent.

WWII looms large, a fitting embodiment of the challenges the unknown and potentially dangerous can be to the stability of the world. The fantasy world, centered on the monster, who becomes his best friend, collides with the reality of people who want to destroy the monster and the boy's imaginative life.

Mix in all this with the father who has been away to war, never to return, and you have a child's romance with the right balance of love and hate, certainty and uncertainty, illusion and reality. It's all much less sophisticated than Shrek, and more like Whale Rider, also filmed in New Zealand. In the latter, a girl rides a whale as an embodiment of the country's hope; in Water Horse, the boy rides the monster to expunge his own fear of water and elude the malignant forces of the adult world. Pretty heady stuff, that.

There are some movies which make you smile and cry at the same time(I didn't cry). This movie is that sort of movie.

The movie starts with an old man telling the old legend of Water Horse to a couple. The story relates to a boy, who lives with his mother and sister. The military just takes over their house during the war time, and the family is forced to live with them. This boy finds a small shining stone and brings it to his house and in the morning after the stone was brought, the stone is not there, instead there are pieces of it, and there in that room a small creature is present. This is the Water Horse. The child takes care of it without raising the suspicions of his mother, but the creature grows so huge in so small time that he is forced to drop it back in the ocean.

The relationship between the creature and boy is shown well in the movie, covering all the emotional angles with panache. The direction is consistent. Although it may not blow your mind with excitement, it is a calm movie which makes one think of the nature of man. I would recommend it.

There has been an overloaded release of fantasy films since the success of the 'Harry Potter' and 'Lord of the Rings' series. While some manage to gain some recognition, others vanish without a trace. 'The Water Horse' is an amusing fantasy-like film for the whole family. It does fall on the lines of Guillermo Del Toro's 'El Laberinto De Fauno' but much less violence. Set in Ireland during the Second World War it tells the story of a bonding between a boy and a water horse. The story isn't anything new but that doesn't stop the film from being charming and likable because it has heart. The use of the mesmerizing landscape is both refreshing and breathtaking. The cinematography is good. Director Russell does a fine job by mingling the subplots well enough with the main story. The music is great but the use of it is arguably a bit clichéd. The CGI is not of the highest quality but Crusoe is lively enough to compensate. Young Alex Etel is brilliant as Angus and Brian Cox does well as the older Angus. Emily Watson is fabulous. Ben Chaplin and David Morissey are wonderful too. To sum it up further, 'The Water Horse' is a nice enough movie that both children and adults can enjoy.

I saw the trailer and the making of The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep, I don't know, something about this film just captured me. It just seemed like a really creative story and looked like a great family film. So, I decided to go ahead and check it out today and I have to say that it really did live up to my expectations, it was a cute film for the whole family to enjoy. It's a different version of Free Willy I think, lol, sounds crazy, I know, but I think you'll agree when you see it. It's definitely a tear jerker, but one of the better films I've seen in a little while in the theater. It was made very well and I'm surprised it hasn't gotten more notice, but like I said, I think I just saw something special in the story. We haven't had a Lochness monster movie, all we know is the infamous picture that has never been prove to be fake or real, and The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep tells us the story behind that picture.

Agnus is a young and lonely boy in Scotland, his father who he was very close with has just gone off into WWII to fight. His home has just been taken over by English soldiers to fight off the German's. His family has lost something too, life and laughter. But when Agnus comes across what looks like a strange rock, is actually an egg left by an Water Horse, the rarest of all creatures, there can only be one in the world at a time. But he takes care of the baby who is water bound, while protecting him from his mom and the soldiers. But when the water horse, he named Crusoe, has grown too big, he and a family friend put him in the Lochness Lake where he is spotted and is now known as the infamous Lochness Monster.

The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep is truly and honestly a good film. It has such a magical touch like The Secret Garden, where it's a serious story, but it's for the family. I thought it was very well made, the visual effects are very good and not over done, which was great, because obviously the Lochness monster is going to be CGI, but they made it look so real, and so lovable, lol, like I said, I did cry, it's a tear jerker. The characters are terrific, they really found terrific actors for the roles. Alex Etel does a beautiful break out performance as Angus and was so charming. I would highly recommend The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep, it's one of the best family films I have seen in a while.

8/10