The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (2007)
NETFLIX SYNOPSIS: Angus MacMorrow (Alex Etel) watches in awe as the mysterious egg he found on the shores of a nearby loch begins to hatch into something incredible. But how long can he keep his ever-growing secret from his mother (Emily Watson) — and an increasingly concerned Scottish government? David Morrissey co-stars in this family-friendly fantasy based on the popular children’s novel by Dick King-Smith.
REVIEW: Ashley Says: The Water Horse is an entertaining family movie about a boy living near Loch Ness who discovers an egg, from which hatches a creature who proceeds to terrorize the local dog. The newly-hired handyman theorizes that the dinosaur-like creature must a Water Horse, a mythic Celtic being that appears very rarely as a plot device in family movies. Suddenly, WWII breaks out! Submarine nets are raised at the mouth of the loch, even though Loch Ness doesn’t actually connect directly to the sea. Troops move in, even though Loch Ness has no military targets. And through a big misunderstanding, shells are fired at the Water Horse, who has no recourse but to help everyone get along nicely. Back to the creature; it’s unclear whether the producers of the film mean to throw support behind Tim Dinsdale’s “kelpie” theory, or if they support the notion of an evolved plesiosaur, as suggested as far back as 75 years ago and supported by the work of Peter Scott and Roy Mackal. And what about the controversial “flipper photograph” from
1972? So it’s fun, but kind of confused, ideologically speaking.
3.5 stars
Ashley
