Ashley is concerned that her divorced father, Jack, is too work-obsessed to spend time with her and her brother Joshua. Sometimes the only way she gets to hear his voice is to record his radio show and listen to it. Then Jack decides to take his children away to a remote Canadian lake for a holiday, in the hope that they will begin to bond again as a family. But there is something strange going on at the lake. The locals claim that there is a monster called Orky in the lake - everyone thinks it is just a tourist attraction, but Ashley knows otherwise when Orky appears to her. The only problem is that Orky is becoming ill because of the chemicals that local businessmen are dumping in the lake. Can Ashley save Orky? And will her family become closer as a result?
Ashley is played by Sarah Wayne, in what according to imdb.com is her only film role. I'm not sure how old she is supposed to be in the film, but she looks about 9. She is actually very charming
in the film - she is not too cutesy, but delivers her lines well enough and looks very down to earth. Her on-screen brother is played by Joshua Jackson - he is, unfortunately, completely forgettable - although to be fair, his role isn't particularly well developed. Jack is played by Mark Harmon who I recognise from a whole raft of American series, including NCIS and Chicago Hope. He is good in the role, despite the fact that he is required to deliver some daft lines and has a rather pointless relationship with a woman also staying by the lake. The fact that he looks a lot like John Barrowman doesn't hurt his reputation much either!
There are a couple of characters that I thought were no more than padding. Uncle Kipper is an American Indian played by Frank Salsedo - Uncle Kipper has magic powers that help Ashley in her plans for Orky. However, he doesn't really appear on screen enough to be a character that matters much to the film and I couldn't help but think that it wouldn't have made much difference if he wasn't there. Another pointless character is Hiro, played by Willie Nark-Orn. He is a friend of Ashley and Joshua and is supposed to be Chinese, although his name sounds Japanese and he speaks a language that I have never heard before - it certainly isn't like any Chinese or Japanese that I've heard before. Again, if he hadn't been in the film at all, it wouldn't have mattered.
This is a children's film and I didn't expect the story to be realistic or particularly complicated. It certainly isn't either. It is a bit silly - think The Loch Ness Monster crossed with Puff the Magic Dragon and that is more or less what you'll get. It is a fluffy bit of fun that I think will appeal to most children, especially young girls, although I have to admit that the 9 year old I watched it with wasn't that impressed - I suspect that was more to do with the fact that she thinks she's too cool to be watching kiddies' films. Something sad does happen which may affect very young children - there is a PG rating on the film. I personally didn't think the story was all that wonderful, but there isn't that much to dislike either.
What does let the film down is the special effects. Made back in 1995, they were never going to be as amazing as they are these days, but nevertheless, Orky is a bit of a disappointment, because he doesn't look at all life-like - director Rick Stevenson presumably didn't have much of a budget. Probably because of this, he doesn't appear in the film all that often, which is a bit strange when the entire film is based around him. This doesn't affect the story all that much, but may put some children off, especially if they are used to much more amazing special effects. On the plus side, there is the environmental angle, which is at least mildly educational.
I am not sure that I would recommend anyone went out of their way to watch this film, although it is worth looking out for on television - I've seen it twice in the last year, so it is likely to be shown again soon. And it is ideal for family entertainment, teaching family values and caring for one another. Recommended, but don't expect anything special and you won't be too disappointed.
The DVD is available from play.com for £5.99, which I think is far too expensive - wait for it to be shown on television.
Classification: PG
Running time: 98 minutes
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