Michael Caine is a notoriously prolific actor, the downside of that being that for all his acclaim he has a reputation for being in as many bad films as good. One that many critics are quick to cite as one of the worst is "Water". That's not entirely fair, for while it is certainly not one of the high points of Caine's career or a resounding success it has an odd sort of charm which makes it somewhat endearing. The concept alone is a large part of the film's appeal; rarely have we seen a big screen satire with the bravado to take on colonialism. The script is by legendary Britcom writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, and while it is not up to the standard of the best of their television work, it contains many amusing moments. The main problem with the film is that it has no real momentum. The plot often moves at a sluggish pace, and some scenes feel like they add nothing to the film and could have easily been dropped. What ultimately saves the film is the performance of Leonard Rossiter, in his last film role before his untimely death. Whilst the character of Sir Malcolm Leveridge offers little challenge to Rigsby or Reginald Perrin, Rossiter still provides a great number of laughs and is the best reason to see the film.

The film's soundtrack is also very enjoyable, in particular a great title track from Eddy Grant.

As Michael Caine competes for another Best Actor Oscar, Water has been included by some commentators in the list of the "bombs" he has taken on "to pay the bills." Ill-advised choices such as The Swarm and Jaws III certainly belong on the list, but I have always considered Water to have brought out Caine's comic ability rather well. The satire is sometimes heavy-handed (especially the Texas oil man caricature by Fred Gwynn) but I find that there is some pretty close to target satire of life, culture, and politics on the many tiny isles of the Eastern Caribbean. I lived on a couple of them myself, and I'm always finding some familiar old friends among Water's characters.

This is the kind of movie where the criminals get arrested and have to be put on probation because the jail is being redecorated. It reminded me of Woody Allen's "Bananas" and Peter Sellers' "The Mouse That Roared."

I would imagine that many people would find this movie racist. It feels like something from 1960's, with an English governor (Michael Caine) and a half-Scottish rebel (Billy Connolly) working to save the colonial subjects from oppression, since they obviously can't take care of themselves.

Despite that, it is quite funny, and the music is good.