Cindi Hammons
29th December 2007, 11:58 AM (11:58)
The Water Horse takes place in WWII Scotland. A boy, his sister, their mother, and a few others are living in a large manor near Loch Ness. It turns out that the boy's mother is the head house keeper for a Scottish Lord who is absent from his property. Her husband has been killed in the war and her son is having a hard time accepting this fact.
This story is told by an older man to two young "tourists" in a flashback formula that seems to work well for the viewer. He tells of the boy, Angus, who finds an egg on the shore of the loch. Angus takes the egg home, which hatches quickly and is a cute little creature. During this time, the British Army sets up quarters in this manor home and complicates Angus' ability to keep his creature a secret...as well as its ability to grow at a rapid pace. This results in several comic scenes in the bathroom and throughout the house and in the outdoor fountain. Finally, with the help of a handy man, Angus takes the water horse and sets it free in the loch.
The army has set up a watch in the loch to be on alert for German submarines. Of course, they mistake the water horse for a submarine and Angus, who is deathly afraid of water, must ride the "horse" in the loch and encourage it to go out to sea.
At the end of the story, the creature has gone out to sea and Angus never sees it again. However, legend states that whenever the water horse is about to die, it goes back to the place of its origin and lays an egg. Of course, we find out that the older man telling the story is truly Angus, and the closing scene shows another small boy finding an egg on the shores of Loch Ness.
I liked the movie as the effects were really good and I enjoyed the WWII aspects as well. I do think that they could have fleshed out some of the characters more, such as the handy man, the army commander, and the relationships between them all. There was a cute brief sidestory of the house cook flirting with the portly army cook as they shared the kitchen. It was sweet. We left the theatre wondering what happened to the rest of his family, did the mother find romance with the handy man...which was suggested in the movie? So, there were unanswered questions, but it was a good movie that was excellent family entertainment. No adult situations, no foul language or anything that would make someone with children uncomfortable watching with them.
This story is told by an older man to two young "tourists" in a flashback formula that seems to work well for the viewer. He tells of the boy, Angus, who finds an egg on the shore of the loch. Angus takes the egg home, which hatches quickly and is a cute little creature. During this time, the British Army sets up quarters in this manor home and complicates Angus' ability to keep his creature a secret...as well as its ability to grow at a rapid pace. This results in several comic scenes in the bathroom and throughout the house and in the outdoor fountain. Finally, with the help of a handy man, Angus takes the water horse and sets it free in the loch.
The army has set up a watch in the loch to be on alert for German submarines. Of course, they mistake the water horse for a submarine and Angus, who is deathly afraid of water, must ride the "horse" in the loch and encourage it to go out to sea.
At the end of the story, the creature has gone out to sea and Angus never sees it again. However, legend states that whenever the water horse is about to die, it goes back to the place of its origin and lays an egg. Of course, we find out that the older man telling the story is truly Angus, and the closing scene shows another small boy finding an egg on the shores of Loch Ness.
I liked the movie as the effects were really good and I enjoyed the WWII aspects as well. I do think that they could have fleshed out some of the characters more, such as the handy man, the army commander, and the relationships between them all. There was a cute brief sidestory of the house cook flirting with the portly army cook as they shared the kitchen. It was sweet. We left the theatre wondering what happened to the rest of his family, did the mother find romance with the handy man...which was suggested in the movie? So, there were unanswered questions, but it was a good movie that was excellent family entertainment. No adult situations, no foul language or anything that would make someone with children uncomfortable watching with them.