The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep
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Engaging but, by the end, surprisingly intense fantasy adventure, set during World War II, in which a forlorn Scottish boy (Alex Etel), coping with the absence of his sailor father (Craig Hall), discovers an egg in the waters of the local loch that hatches a rapidly growing dinosaurlike creature which he eventually identifies as the "Water Horse" spoken of in Celtic legends and which he nurtures with the help of his sister (Priyanka Xi) and a war-veteran handyman (Ben Chaplin), while concealing its existence from his housekeeper mother (Emily Watson) and the strict Army officer (David Morrissey) whose soldiers are encamped on the estate she serves. Director Jay Russell's screen version of Dick King-Smith's 1990 children's book, like its title character, starts off unthreateningly, but gets steadily more ominous as it moves toward a turbulent climax that would likely frighten most young children. Fantasy violence, one crass expression and one profanity; acceptable for less sensitive younger viewers. A-II -- adults and adolescents. (PG)
2007
The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep
"The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep" (Sony) is an engaging but, by the end, a surprisingly intense fantasy adventure. Set in Scotland during World War II, the film draws on Celtic legends to provide an explanation of the origins of the Loch Ness monster.
Angus MacMorrow (Alex Etel) is a forlorn boy coping with the absence of his sailor father Charlie (Craig Hall) and with his own fear of, but attraction to, the water. While spending time on the shore of the local loch, where the boys of the town swim, Angus happens upon an interesting-looking rock and takes it home.
He quickly discovers the unusual object is, in fact, an egg, one which hatches a rapidly growing dinosaurlike creature. Overcoming his wariness of this unexpected visitor, Angus brings him scraps of food and names him Crusoe.
He enlists the help of his sympathetic sister Kirstie (Priyanka Xi) and of newly hired handyman and scarred war veteran Lewis Mowbray (Ben Chaplin) in his efforts to conceal Crusoe from his no-nonsense mother Anne (Emily Watson), the housekeeper on a large estate. The property has lately been requisitioned as an Army camp whose strict commanding officer, Capt. Hamilton (David Morrissey), Angus finds equally intimidating.
As Crusoe's dramatic growth spurt continues, Angus reluctantly agrees to release him into the loch. However, Captain Hamilton's men are there and on high alert, fearful of the threatened German invasion.
Angus, meanwhile, has become a pawn in the subtle rivalry between Hamilton and Mowbray for the affections of his mother. Hamilton tries to instill discipline into the boy, even as Mowbray beguiles him with Scottish lore.
Director Jay Russell's screen version of Dick King-Smith's 1990 children's book, like its title character, starts off unthreateningly. But the film grows steadily more ominous as it moves toward its turbulent climax. Though the film has a minimal amount of objectionable content, such scenes will likely frighten most young children.
There are a number of good performances, with Chaplin especially notable as the taciturn and irascible, yet fundamentally sensitive, loner Mowbray. Oliver Stapleton's lensing makes New Zealand -- where the film was shot -- a convincing stand-in for the starkly majestic Highlands. Overall, "The Water Horse" is a finely made film, but not one for the fainthearted.
The film contains fantasy violence, one crass expression and one profanity; it is acceptable for less sensitive younger viewers. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.
Movies have been evaluated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishop's Office for Film and Broadcasting according to artistic
merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the USCCB rating,
the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a brief
synopsis of the movie.
The classifications are as follows:
- A-I -- general patronage;
- A-II -- adults and adolescents;
- A-III -- adults;
- A-IV**
- L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
- O -- morally offensive.
** Discontinued classification. All archived movies that were originally in the A-IV category are now classified as L.