Eine Welle glänzenden Wassers (1969)

Eine Welle glänzenden Wassers: Directed by Jack Couffer. With Bill Travers, Virginia McKenna, Peter Jeffrey, Jameson Clark. Whoever said dog is man’s best friend never met Mij! Mij is a cute, cuddly pet shop otter who captures the heart of Graham Merill (Bill Travers). It doesn’t take Graham long to realize that London is no place to raise a slippery otter. So he takes Mij to live in a ramshackle cottage on the coast of Scotland. Together they set out to explore the curious and magnificent natural wonders that surround their seaside home–from orphaned geese to tooth-less sharks. While Mij spends his days frolicking in the icy cold sea, Graham finds himself falling in love with the beautiful town doctor, Mary (Virginia McKenna). Before long, the three become inseparable friends.

“The plot of u0026quot;Ring of Bright Wateru0026quot; is a simple one. Graham Merrill, a London-based civil servant, one day, on impulse, buys an otter which he sees in a pet shop window. It soon becomes clear that a London flat is no place in which to keep a pet otter, and this persuades Merrill to put into effect a plan which he has had in mind for some time, namely to escape from the rat-race and move to the Scottish Highlands in order to write a book. Once there, he takes up residence in a dilapidated old cottage by the shore and becomes friendly with Mary MacKenzie, the local doctor. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAlthough a romance develops between Graham and Mary, their love-story has to take second place to the love-story which is really at the centre of the film, that between Mij the otter and the audience. Mij, who takes his name from an Arab sheikh whom Graham met during his travels, is one of the most entertaining and engaging creatures in the history of the cinema, and virtually the whole of the film is centred upon him and his adventures- the havoc he wreaks during a train journey from London to Scotland, his growing friendships with Maryu0026#39;s dog Johnnie and with a family of young geese which Graham also adopts, and Grahamu0026#39;s efforts to catch a shark in order to provide him with food. (Mij, predictably enough, decides that shark steaks are not to his liking). u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe human stars of the film, Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna, were husband and wife in real life, and both were well-known for their support for animal welfare and conservation. Three years earlier they had starred together in u0026quot;Born Freeu0026quot;, a film with a conservationist message, and u0026quot;Ring of Bright Wateru0026quot; can perhaps be seen as more of the same. Here that message is rather underplayed, except perhaps during the poignant ending, but there are some occasional neat touches such as the scene where Graham, on a visit to London, sees an otter-skin coat in a shop window. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis is not a particularly deep film, but it is a charming one, its charm being helped by a catchy theme song (another similarity to u0026quot;Born Freeu0026quot;), a fine musical score and some equally fine photography of the Scottish Highland scenery. This is perfect Sunday afternoon viewing for the family, and perfect for all nature lovers. 7/10”