A typical gentle giant film about a large creature living in a deep Canadian lake. Adored by the locals with potential earth shattering ramifications for scientific community, Mee-Shee is a water bound ET. It has all the elements of a good film for the kids under 11, and only kids under 11 that are not use to the normal breakneck paced, borderline porn, of today's 'family' films. The main character is Mac (Magder) who searches for Mee-Shee as the locals try and convince him not to tell his scientist dad about the 'monster'. The CGI is OK, and the cinematography is good. Seasoned actors keep the film from being a real bore due to lack of action and a well worn plot. It accomplishes its goal of being a clean family film for the very young to enjoy.
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wrlang30 July 2006
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Young boy who was suppose to go on vacation with his dad finds that his plans are changed when his dad's business send them to a remote Canadian lake where a helicopter crashed. Once there he's left to his own devices as his dad tries to recover the chopper and what it was carrying. In the process he discovers the tales of a monster living in the lake are true.
Sweet family film with a creature by the Henson Creature Shop. I'm guessing that most adults are going to find this a quaint little film thats very much like the films they saw growing up. I'll also wager that most young kids are going to eat this up, which isn't surprising since this is actually a pretty good movie that, while probably not memorable, isn't something that you're going to go wandering off while its on. Yea, its a movie that both kids and parents are going to enjoy.
I liked it and can honestly say that if you end up seeing it you'll probably like it too. -
lastliberal25 December 2007Before Joel Tobeck appears in the new Water Horse movie, he is a mean GreenPeace member that is trying to delay drilling in a Canadian lake, and then trying to capture Mee-Shee for profit.
The absolute beauty of British Columbia comes forth in stunning beauty on my new TV, and I don't even have the Hi-Def hooked up yet. I really wanted something to show me what I can expect, and I certainly wasn't disappointed.
Bruce Greenwood (Double Jeopardy, I'm Not There) cancels a vacation with his son to find a drill bit. Daniel Magder plays the son, who discovers magic in the water in the form of a strange looking creature.
It is a slow moving picture notable not for action, but for beauty.
Luanne Gordon (King Kong) manages to be the impetus for Greenwood to decide to slow his life down and enjoy the beauty of BC. -
Life7775 October 2008The premise of Mac Campbell's character is based on a neglected child who has lost his mother recently. His dad (Bruce Greenwood) has unintentionally ignored his son by burying himself in work after his wife died and has decided to make it up to Mac by taking him to a theme park. The boy is devastated to find out that his dad's plans have changed as a result of an emergency trip to Canada. Mac, played by Daniel Magder plays an angry, somewhat stoic, curious, brave yet emotional young man. I believe he pulled it off beautifully. In fact he adds a touch of humor to his character in a non funny situation when speaking under his breath about Pawnee, his new found friend. My kids have seen him in "Life with Derek" as "Edwin" and he portrays a totally different type of character showing his versatility. (They've coaxed me into watching a few episodes).
Mee-She The Water Giant is great for kids but I think it could have been simplified for the benefit of the younger viewers. That being said, I recommend renting it or purchasing the film. I purchased the film and my kids have seen it many times. -
watchtiger116 January 2011This is supposed to be a Children's movie, well I wouldn't let a child watch this, bad script, very bad acting fills this movie. Jim Henson's creature shop was used for the creature Mee-Shee, which was a travesty to the work they have done previously.
The adults are condescending to the children constantly and they do not act as adult would towards children in their care. Mac's father, the man in-charge of recovering the drill bit, just leaves his son in the care of a bad impression of Mrs. Doubtfire who tries extolling the same platitudes. Also the D.F.E.A agent ( Canadian Evironmental Officer) takes the two kids to where they saw Mee-Shee and then just leaves the boy to fend for himself while taking Pawnee with her.
The script is very weak. The lines written for children are limited and not very deep. Also several actors can not pronounce the movie/creature's name and say Mishee or even mitchee, both children and adult actors seem to have this problem.
There is a fight between Mac's father and one of the villains, I've seen two year old children fight better then this their punches are so choreographed it's as if they used string to show where they should land them.
All around if I were anyone connected with this movie I would have asked my name be removed from it. The script is bad and many things happen that do not make sense, people allowed to use machinery they have no experience with, a million dollar sub guarded by a man as old as Moses, the villain's sub is worth more than the the "good guys" sub yet the villain's partner is bewildered by equipment on the sub.
An interesting point in this movie is the boy has a baseball cap that must be glued on with super glue. He falls down cliff holes, lands in water (twice) yet the cap never falls off or is lost. I said it was an interesting point, it should be said it's the only point.
I would not waste your time or your children's time in watching this bad move. The native girl is given the name Pawnee which is racially offensive. At the end of the movie it teaches the that it is good to lie about something. -
Vic_max23 September 2008If you're in the mood for a low-key, pleasant little kid-centric "lock-ness" monster movie, you'll enjoy this one. I started watching it in the background while it was on a TV movie channel and quickly got interested in it.
The basic premise is as follows: A helicopter carrying an important oil-drilling bit has crashed in a remote Canadian lake. The drilling company sends their small-submarine specialist (who brings his son) to recover the item. While there, the boy encounters an elusive local resident of the lake. In the midst of all this, a rival drilling company is trying to sabotage the recovery efforts ... and the story progresses from there.
There's nothing really special about the plot and the kid-centric aspect can be a potential turn-off for many adult viewers. However, in this case, the story is well done and the characters are well acted and interesting - so it was worth the time.
As long as you're expectations are for a low-key but well done little movie, you'll have a pleasant time. -
cwbutler-115 May 2006Our family really likes lake serpent stories. We enjoyed the director's Loch Ness movie, but Mee-Shee was just fabulous. Mee-Shee herself had a lot of screen time and interacted with the human characters. The animation was beautifully done, and the special effects were great. Good performances all around, lovely scenery, touching story. Lake serpent fans will be well pleased with the surprises toward the end. Mee-Shee is based on the real-life Canadian lake serpent Ogopogo. We saw this movie twice at the Tribeca Film Festival and hope that it finds a North American distributor.
Creating sea animals that are truly believable is a very difficult task, but the creature shop deserves special kudos for both the imagination and the care that has gone into the realization of Mee Shee.
Credit must also go to the excellent cast, which performs with distinction opposite the animal co-star. Bruce Greenwood brings a valuable degree of warmth to the role of the father without going overboard. Indeed, the entire cast manages to make the film truly heartwarming without crossing over the line into manipulating the heartstrings. -
Simon_peters17 July 2009Poor casting, intermittent periods where the film treads water with overlong pictures of the scenery, and a lack of anyone in the cast to empathise with, render this a dreary experience. Edited with no sense of timing and with unmemorable music laid on with a trowel, the performances are unable to engage or sustain one's attention. The biggest drawback is that there is nobody one likes - the hero is the American equivalent of a shop dummy in a Cecil Gee window, the son is blank faced except when he is petulant. Custer is inscrutable and a boring character. The villains are cardboard cutouts, and the mad woman of the hills is alarming and repellent.
Custer's daughter is the only bright spark in the film, and acts everyone else off the screen, not that that was hard to do.
The Henson Creature Shop shut up shop in London shortly after this film was made; maybe they had lost heart when they saw it.
One to miss. -
1negevoli8 September 2008I enjoyed Mee-Shee, except when the lame and talentless child actor called it Mishee. You'd think he'd be able to pronounce the name of the movie correctly but, honestly, he is so bad maybe that's not something he can do. Loved Bruce Greenwood, as always. And as usual, he it too good for the material and his poker-faced co-star.
(The New Zealand scenery, filling in for Canada, makes me crazy to want to go there.)
Whenever I see a child actor this bad I always wonder which of the producers he belongs to. The kid never changed expression, even when facing down a water "monster," as far as he knows.
I really recommend everybody see this film just so they can catch probably the worst child actor ever. The little dude didn't even try.
This could have been much better without the kid who played the kid. -
...submarines, good acting, great landscape (Queenstown NZ), salmon sandwiches and, of course, the mighty lake-o-saurus!
I wrote "gripping" as even for adults the story keeps you in the seat; the baddies are pretty bad, and the tech- & boat-gear is all plausible. So it's one for the whole family, not only the young cryptozoologists.