IMDb RATING
6.1/10
1.6K
YOUR RATING
This children's fantasy tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who discovers a complex underwater world where young children are held prisoner by an evil shark and an eel.This children's fantasy tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who discovers a complex underwater world where young children are held prisoner by an evil shark and an eel.This children's fantasy tells the story of a 12-year-old boy who discovers a complex underwater world where young children are held prisoner by an evil shark and an eel.
- Awards
- 1 win total
Jon Pertwee
- Salmon
- (voice)
- …
David Jason
- Cyril the Walrus
- (voice)
Ignacy Machowski
- Grimes
- (polish version)
- (voice)
Tadeusz Plucinski
- Foreman
- (polish version)
- (voice)
Jerzy Tkaczyk
- Sir John
- (polish version)
- (voice)
Featured reviews
I can't tell you how much I loved this movie when I first saw it in 1981. The cable went all fuzzy and I watched the last 20 minutes through squiggles. I was heartbroken because I could barely make out the happy ending.
I was so excited to see it on DVD and was thisclose to buying it. But money is tight, and I discovered my library had a VHS copy, so I restrained myself. Yeah me.
Cuz this is one rotten movie. All kinds of rotten. I think a grown woman was dubbed in over Tom. The 'special effects' aren't special or effective, mostly stupid. The animation is dull. The acting is bad. The songs overwhelmingly forgettable. The dialog and pacing are painful.
Who knew I had such bad taste when I was eleven? Learn something new every day!
I was so excited to see it on DVD and was thisclose to buying it. But money is tight, and I discovered my library had a VHS copy, so I restrained myself. Yeah me.
Cuz this is one rotten movie. All kinds of rotten. I think a grown woman was dubbed in over Tom. The 'special effects' aren't special or effective, mostly stupid. The animation is dull. The acting is bad. The songs overwhelmingly forgettable. The dialog and pacing are painful.
Who knew I had such bad taste when I was eleven? Learn something new every day!
My childhood was never the same. He was but a simple chimney sweep and then these whistles kept going off & women kept winking at him until it all got to much for him & he jumped in a river & became a cartoon.& things got even more wavy.
I remember the first time I saw this movie I fell in love. My parents taped it for me so that I could watch it over and over again. I actually still have a copy of it on an old BETA tape. Unfortunately, I watched it so much that I ended up pretty much wearing the tape out. Okay, so compared to the animation and acting of today, it can't compare but it was made in '78, what do you expect? Animation and film have come a long way since then it's not going to be like the films of today. All I have to say is that it's a good family movie that I will always enjoy. If you like classic movies, I would recommend this one.
I absolutely LOVED this movie as a child. I can't seem to find it anywhere! I was mentioning it to some friends just the other day, and not a single one of them remembers it! Can anyone help me out? My older sister vaguely remembers it. There was also another movie I remember that was half live action and half animation, but I can't remember the name of it. The characters were animated and the background was real...I seem to remember it being about a kangaroo, and I believe the setting of the film was in Australia. I'm going out of my mind trying to obtain copies of these films that were such a memorable part of my very enjoyable childhood. Edit: I searched IMDb for this other movie and found out it's called Dot and the Kangaroo! All I had to do was type in "kangaroo" in the search bar under characters, and the name of the movie in the list was like a bell going off! MAN, I love IMDb! Thanks!
I was wandering through my local library, browsing VHS tapes, when I saw a movie that made my mouth drop--Waterbabies. I have been hoping to see this movie again--it's been over 22 years since I saw it (cable-movie channel around 78-79). I had recalled a good many of the details--Grimes in particular. My son, who is 4, and I watched it.
He agreed with me that Grimes was "Not nice", and the best way for me to describe it was that he didn't love Tom. He accepted that. It was amazing that I still recalled some of the songs, too! They had stuck in my head for 22 years--which means they had to have some memorable-ness, eh?
It's a good child's movie, with parental guidance in case of questions about what children had to go through that were not nobility/society in the time-frame. This is what all the children faced daily (except for a few lucky ones), and while we try to Disney-coat movies, making them more pc for children these days, it doesn't mean that cruelty didn't exist--or even still doesn't. I enjoyed the animation. It wasn't Disney, no. I don't think Don Bluth touched a paintbrush on this movie.
There's a lot going for it, though. David T plays two roles! (I really like him!) James M does too. The waterbabies themselves are cute. You feel sorry for Tom, and root for him. Then Billie herself is extraordinary in the multi-role part she's playing--it's as if her eyes ARE magickal! I'm a huge fan of WoO, TLW&TW, and company (AND LOOKING FORWARD TO HP!), and I filed this along with those kind of movies. Yes, he jumps in the water, but not because of suicide. He jumped because he trusted the lady in black--she'd been appearing to him all along.
I think it's a good movie! If you have kids, pick up a rental copy. If you happen to locate a buy-able copy, let me know where! Ian liked it! :)
Dee
He agreed with me that Grimes was "Not nice", and the best way for me to describe it was that he didn't love Tom. He accepted that. It was amazing that I still recalled some of the songs, too! They had stuck in my head for 22 years--which means they had to have some memorable-ness, eh?
It's a good child's movie, with parental guidance in case of questions about what children had to go through that were not nobility/society in the time-frame. This is what all the children faced daily (except for a few lucky ones), and while we try to Disney-coat movies, making them more pc for children these days, it doesn't mean that cruelty didn't exist--or even still doesn't. I enjoyed the animation. It wasn't Disney, no. I don't think Don Bluth touched a paintbrush on this movie.
There's a lot going for it, though. David T plays two roles! (I really like him!) James M does too. The waterbabies themselves are cute. You feel sorry for Tom, and root for him. Then Billie herself is extraordinary in the multi-role part she's playing--it's as if her eyes ARE magickal! I'm a huge fan of WoO, TLW&TW, and company (AND LOOKING FORWARD TO HP!), and I filed this along with those kind of movies. Yes, he jumps in the water, but not because of suicide. He jumped because he trusted the lady in black--she'd been appearing to him all along.
I think it's a good movie! If you have kids, pick up a rental copy. If you happen to locate a buy-able copy, let me know where! Ian liked it! :)
Dee
Did you know
- TriviaThe film was released about 115 years after Charles Kingsley's source novel of the same name, first published in 1863.
- GoofsWhen Tom and the lobster are singing "High Cockalorum" for the first time, Tom's mouth is opening and closing when he is not actually saying anything. Likewise, his mouth is shut when he is saying something.
- Crazy creditsThe movie's opening credits summarizes in illustrations of "A Story of a Little Chimney Sweep in the Year 1850". While the chimney sweeper is climbing:
- The live-action cast members is portrayed in oval picture frames.
- For the "animated sequences" credits, it shows the design of Tom ( Tommy Pender ), in his underwater design, and the design of the Otter.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Le retour de Mary Poppins (2018)
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- The Water Babies
- Filming locations
- River Wharfe, Yorkshire, England, UK(on location)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $2,000,000 (estimated)
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