Well what a blast from the past watching this film was! A film I watched repeatedly as a child so watching as an adult, parts of it came rushing back, memories of why I watched it so many times. Yet I always remember as a child this made me cry every time, luckily didn’t make me cry as an adult though! Anyway, what a classic little animation this film is, an adventure of three children who are accidentally turned into fish. Although they are against the clock as they must turn back into humans within the next 48 hours, otherwise they are fish forever. Simple plot I know, but it’s a children’s film what do you expect? Anyway, there’s a slight problem that they can’t find the antidote, lost in the sea, discovering that an evil little fish has taken it and using it for his own needs. This little fish discovering the antidote gives normal fish intelligence and the ability to speak, therefore in his little evil mind an army under his control must be risen and he must get all control of the sea. Of course.
Fly, the young boy known for his mischievous tricks in talking, takes his younger sister, Stella and his more serious, logical cousin Chuck to the seaside, a trip not quite accepted by his aunt, however, who was supposed to be looking after them. On a little adventurous trip, they stumble upon a secret boat with a mad genius scientist living on, Professor MacKrill. A scientist dedicated to figuring out how humans can live under water to survive the sea levels rising. You may be able to guess what happens, the little children end up turning into the fish and are stranded in the deep blue sea. Fly, now a Californian flyfish, Stella, a starfish, and Chuck, a jellyfish. And you cannot forget Stella’s quick friendship with a seahorse, which she names Sasha. A bigger adventure they embark on now.
I have to admit, there are some extremely dramatic parts in this film, although it all embeds within the children’s adventure under water. It’s something you just have to get used to. Plus, the animation looks quite old, but in a way it works with the film, after the initial shock. It sort of has a comic cartoon feel to the film rather than the realistic animations we see so often now. But the villain fish is voiced by the great Alan Rickman! Which I never realised before, but of course is great. Also, the film is sort of a musical, there are like three songs in the film I think, where they randomly start singing, but in a way it makes sense to the film, and I wouldn’t say the film is technically a musical. The film feels incredibly short, but actually quite a lot happens in their adventure under sea.
As you can probably tell I find this film great, it’s an enjoyable little adventure film. Although, it is very much a kid’s film, I mostly watch it for nostalgia, having only watched it recently since childhood. Not the best children’s film, but it isn’t awful by no regards, I would never class it as bad, it’s a good nostalgia film! Although if you’re looking for a classic children’s film that you’ve never seen before, this is a good shout. Either way, the song will be stuck in your head afterwards, because “I’m a little yellow fish in the deep blue sea, will somebody help me?”
Striking Film Reviews 