Customer Reviews

Ring of Bright Water

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I saw this movie when I was 7 years old and I never forgot it.Even at such a young age I could appreciate the humor and beauty of it. Theres just one thing, if you are buying it for a young child I would really reconsider. It had an overwhelming affect on me as a 7 year old to see Mij get killed.It was my first experience with death. I left the theater hystericaly crying,gave me nightmares and made me very fearful that people and animals I love would die. I had been looking for this movie for a long time and when I finally found it and watched it, it made me cry again,but now I can appreciate the end and how life goes on and the beauty in that.I think its a great movie but for older children (11 yrs old) and adults.

Ring of bright water is a British film full of the images and sounds of the late 60's. It is a wonderful story about a writer (Graham) who acquires an orphaned and much out of place young otter named Mij (pronounced Midge). Graham decides to move and take Mij from the heart of London to a more natural setting, the coast of northwest Scotland. This story works on so many levels there is the relationship between Graham and Mij as each learns from the other about being friends. There is also the relationship between the two newcomers (Graham and Mij) and the locals. The film takes you through a whole roller coaster of emotions. This movie will make you laugh, smile and cry. The end of the movie almost verges on letting you decide how the film really ended. Hope and belief is a wondrous thing.

This film is a highly fictionalized version of what was actually a true story in the book of the same name by Gavin Maxwell. As fiction, the screenplay takes dramatic license in ways both entertaining and trivializing. But what the film does most compellingly depict is the beauty of the Scottish shore, the uniqueness and remarkability of otters, and the life-changing relationship between a man and his otter. I was one of the children who grew up watching the movie, "Born Free." Those not of this generation may not be able to relate to the effect the movie ("Born Free") had on our culture and our awareness of animals as conscious beings (probably had a big part in giving rise to the enthusiasm for animal rights and the animal liberation movement that occurred some years later). I found "Ring of Bright Water" equally moving, albeit not for the same reasons, but for that same way of depicting animals with dignity and humor. In the more than ten years since I've seen this movie, I never forgot it and eventually bought a copy of my own [....])

*SPOILERS*

Because parents need to know these things, I must address this. This movie's description makes it sound like "Andre" or some other cute movie about a wild animal taken in by a family. Well, it is ... right up until the point where - out of the clear blue sky - the cute little otter is bludgeoned to death.

Parents of small children MUST know these things going in or they will have some seriously messed up kids. My wife watched it alone first and it traumatized HER! She's still angry that I even brought it in the house. I may not have if I'd had some warning on the video cover but it only talks about fun, mischief and frolic, not violence, tragedy and grief. Those subjects are legitimate topics for films but there should be some kind of heads-up.

The quality of the film isn't the problem, nor is the unflinching realism of it. It's the misleading advertising.

I picked this up from one of those cheap DVD racks in a grocery store near my home. What drew me in was the otter since I'm a ferret owner and find these ferret cousins to be equally appealing. I didn't expect it to be such a nice story with such amazing footage of the adorable otter, Mij. I'm sure a lot of the interactions between otter and human had to be ad lib and the result is pure delight. It's also got some really funny scenes - especially when Mij's owner is buying a train ticket to Scotland and tells the ticket booth he has a "diving terrier" and when Mij gets loose on the train. The ensuing events made me realize Mr. Bean's slapstick was certainly nothing new!

The footage in Scotland is absolutely gorgeous and further convinced me I need to visit there someday. The story does have some sad moments as other reviewers have revealed but all in all your left with a warm feeling of love between an animal and his owner and that life truly does go on. If you've ever loved - and lost - a pet you will truly love this movie.

Gavin Maxwell's wonderful book can be tough going for children, though my 10-year-old enjoyed having it read aloud to him, with some paraphrasing of the gnarlier bits of prose. The film, only loosely based on the book, is a good alternative, with lots of footage of otter frolicking in a beautiful setting, and just enough plot to keep things interesting. Warning, children will find the death of Mij unsettling, and may not be completely soothed by the upbeat conclusion of the film.

A middle-aged writer seeks solitude from his hectic London life, which he blames for his writer's block, to attempt his next novel. He settles down in a quaint cottage near the water in a town so small that someone from the street will run one of the local shops if the proprietor becomes ill. A young orphaned otter, Mitch, stumbles into his life and helps him learn the true meaning of unconditional love, teaching him how to communicate and reach out to other people. Together they develop a closeness with the town's veterinarian and her dog, Mitch's best friend. The movie has a sad ending which will melt anyone's heart; yet it tells us that as long as life exists, there is always hope and happiness since life is not a start-stop function, but the circularity of a cycle.

I recently saw this DVD on the sale rack at my local grocery store. The adorable picture of the otter on the cover caught my eye right away, and the description on the back cover spoke of fun and frolic and friendship and adventure. I thought it sounded like an uplifting movie about the love people share with companion animals (a subject for which I've always held strong affection since I've always been a nature and animal lover). So I bought the DVD and looked forward to watching the movie at home.

The opening segment is slow, but maybe that was done intentionally to covey the tedium of Graham's job and routine, and to establish the foundation of how his life is ripe for a change.

The otter, Mij, is adorable and enchanting from the very first moment he appears onscreen.

The movie really takes flight when Graham leaves his tedious job and big city life in London, and relocates to the stunning beauty of coastal Scotland. Mij blossoms in a natural environment, and the bond between Mij and Graham grows very strong. The shots of the otter frolicking in nature are easily the best of the whole film, and the cinematography of the Scottish highlands and shimmering seascapes is magnificent.

The relationship between Graham and Dr. Mary MacKenzie is handled beautifully. Their friendship blooms into love, and their love is enacted onscreen in a refreshingly subtle manner. And the friendship between Mij and the doctor's dog, Johnny, is very charming.

**Plot Spoiler**

So after all the enchantment of the animals, nature scenery, and the blossoming love between Graham and the doctor described above, imagine the surprise and utter shock when, as Mij and Johnny are playing and chasing each other through the grass and along the road on their way back home, Mij is suddenly, shockingly, brutally bludgeoned to death by an extremely ignorant ditch-digger. I don't know if it's possible to describe how unprepared we as the viewers are for what happens to Mij, nor the shock over the senselessness of it. I was completely appalled by the atrocity and brutality of it. Nothing on the packaging or advertising, nor anything in the movie up to that point, had even hinted at this. One minute Mij and his best friend are playing happily; the next Mij is brutally, senselessly, horribly murdered. It happens so suddenly I almost couldn't even believe it. And I couldn't stop crying for almost an hour afterwards.

I suppose this was done as a commentary on the ignorance of people who don't understand the love, companionship, and dignity of companion animals/pets. To that end, it certainly was effective (too effective, in my personal opinion). But for the pure cinematic value of this story, and perhaps because the film's leading actor and actress were also the leads of "Born Free," I as the viewer had been watching and somewhat anticipating that the movie might build to a conclusion where perhaps Mij is released into the wild to live as a free otter. The scene where Mij encounters a female otter on the beach almost seemed to hint at such a possibility. When the movie ended with a female otter following her 3 baby otters as they instinctively headed to the pool in the stream where Mij used to swim (and where Mij seemed to be his happiest), and the beautiful ballad played during the credits as the exquisitely-filmed scenes of the otters at play in the water continued, there was a bittersweetness to see Mij's babies following in their father's behavior, but knowing that Mij himself never got to see his children, and also that Graham wouldn't be able to have the same bond with them (the scene where Graham sees an otter emerge from the water, and calls out "Mij!" but gets no response from the otter confirms that Mij is truly gone). But Mij's life was not in vain since he was loved, happy, and fathered beautiful babies. In his short life, Mij brought much life and love to live on in all around him.

I still give this movie 4 out of 5 stars, only taking off the 5th star due to the brutality of Mij's killing as described above. Animal and nature lovers will still enjoy the wonderful scenes of Mij at play, and the beauty of the Scottish seascape. Just be sure to watch this movie with a box of tissues close at hand.

**Update**

After writing this review, I began to research this film, and the book it was based on, and I learned that sadly this was a true story and that the real Mij was indeed killed just as depicted in the movie. While I now understand that this means they had to include this heartbreaking episode in the film, it also makes the tragedy that much greater to know it really happened in real life. Mij was adopted in 1956 and killed in 1957... yet he is immortalized forever in the book by the author who adopted and loved him, and in this movie, and also in the memorial statue of the real Mij on the beautiful Scottish seashores where he frolicked. Thank you, Mij, for teaching us all about love and pure joy... in your too-short time here on earth, you managed to leave a legacy that will live forever. God rest your sweet soul.

This is not a good movie for children, though you won't know this until the end of the movie, when the otter is cruelly and senselessly killed. My 11 year old son cried himself to sleep.

The scenary is beautiful and for the most part, so is the story. It is too bad that the ending was not better considered, instead it comes out of nowhere.

I've seen this movie many,many years ago.

Midge is an otter with a great fun loving personality.

Most of the movie is a joy to watch as we see the antics of Midge and the love of the guy who owns her.

After seeing this film,I became enamored with otters. They seemed altogether so enjoyable and lovable. After seeing this movie, I've never forgotten it. I sort of fell in love with the otter.

If you have seen it, I recommend another viewing. If you haven't seen it,you must!

No matter how old the movie is, it's timeless.

Yes the end is sad, but it's life and reality and you'll gain an admiration for otters and all wild creatures that will really move you to tears.

Have you seen the famous "Otters Holding Hands" clip? If not you may really choose it as a youtube favorite.

It's a movie reminiscent of "Born Free" and if you liked "Born Free", you'll also treasure this.