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Arts & Culture

The Water Horse

The Water Horse of the title (and this is not really a spoiler considering how the book was promoted and what the trailers have revealed) is a kind of sea creature that looks like a cross between a dragon and a pleiseosaurus. And since the story is set in Scotland, the creature might be none other than the famed Loch Ness Monster.

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Crusoe and friend in The Water Horse (Columbia)

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Unlike the book, the film frames the story with a present day narrator played by Brian Cox. Cox engages a couple of young American tourists with a local tale about the infamous Nessie. As he tell it, back in 1942 there was a little boy named Angus MacMorrow (Millions' Alex Etel). Angus' father is off fighting the war and his mother (the lovely Emily Watson) is the housekeeper for an estate sitting right off Loch Ness. The British Army send a self-important Captain Hamilton (David Morrissey) to watch over what he considers a high priority location. Also arriving is a handyman named Lewis Mowbray (Ben Chaplin).

Caught up in his own world, however, is Angus who discovers an egg that unexpectedly hatches into an adorable creature that the boy immediately adopts as a pet. He names his pet Crusoe, after Robinson Crusoe. But Crusoe has a voracious appetite and an amazing ability to grow by leaps and bounds every night. In no time, the cute little imp has turned into a pet too big for anything around the house. Angus is forced to reveal the creature to Mowbray who explains that it's probably the Water Horse of ancient myths.

King-Smith's book played on a very attractive idea--taking something that could be scary to children, in this case the Loch Ness Monster, and turning it into something friendly. That notion is kept happily intact in the Jay Russell's film, but not much else. The Water Horse is yet another example of Hollywood turning to literature and keeping little more than the book's title. But at least in this case, the film retains enough of the book's charm to be enjoyable on its own terms. The changes seem mainly designed to add more action for the screen. What was surprising in the book was how easily the Water Horse is accepted into the kids' and the family's life. Russell and writer Robert Nelson Jacobs apparently felt that such a simple and heart-warming tale might not have enough bells and whistles to hook movie audiences. So they have added plenty of big guns and explosions.

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A boy and his water horse (Columbia)

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Russell had previously directed My Dog Skip and The Water Horse is essentially just My Water Horse Crusoe . He understands that you have to establish the relationship of the boy and his pet if you want to hook audiences. (In the book, the sister is the one who finds the egg and who takes a primary role in the story.) In The Water Horse , Russell scores big by casting young Alex Etel as Angus. Etel made us believe in saints in the film Millions . Now he makes us believes that a computer generated water horse is a living and breathing creature. Etel has such innocence and sincerity that he easily convinces us that this fantasy is real. There is a sweet earnestness about Etel that is utterly charming. He possesses none of the cloying cuteness or syrupy emotions that too often mar young children's performances. As in Millions , Etel is simply a wonder and a delight.

Crusoe's not bad either. This CGI-created creature is wonderfully well integrated into the story. At times he's a bit too cute for his own good but who cares. As he grows, he becomes quite an impressive beast and his underwater excursions with Angus are amazing. The lush landscape (which I believe may sometimes be New Zealand and not just Scotland) is also an attraction. Walden Media, which produced Charlotte's Web, The Chronicles of Narnia and The Bridge to Teribithia , continues to seek out and deliver family entertainment that boasts high production values and solid acting. I will try to overlook their involvement with the horrendous Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium . (Just a note: Walden Media does have some darker material in the works including a rumored Clive Barker/Edgar Allan Poe Project.)

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Emily Watson and Ben Chaplin (Columbia)

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The Water Horse also benefits from adult performances of high quality, most notably from Emily Watson and Ben Chaplin. They create an adult world that won't turn off the kids but which provides some interest to the older members of the audience. They don't dumb down their performances or try to ingratiate themselves with the young demographic. Instead they actually try to find a level of reality to their characters and the war time setting. They, along with Brian Cox, raise the level of the film.

The Water Horse (rated for some action/peril, mild language and brief smoking) is a lovely family tale. Not as magical as the book but enchanting just the same.

Companion viewing: Millions, The Secret of Roan Innish, E.T., Born Free, Ring of Bright Water (but parents watch out for the sad ending if you have kids)