The mystery behind Loch Ness monster will resurface again, thanks to ‘The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep’. Most non-horror creature films are predictably formulaic. In the case of the Water Horse, this family friendly saga works a simple, straightforward premise; it explores the friendship between us humans and the animal kingdom, much like Free Willy, E.T., and perhaps even King Kong to certain extent.

The Water Horse is a coming of age story of a reclusive boy who matures up to life’s realities when he discovers a mysterious egg that hatches into the mythological Nessie, which he nicknames Crusoe. The film has clearly taken the world’s Nessie obsession to another level: instead of wild imaginations fueled by the smudges in highly circulated photos believed to be cameos of Nessie, the film actually gives this Scottish fixation a life story and a heartwarming I-so-want-to-keep-you-in-my-bathtub sort of character.

Cute sells and so we reckon that adorable little Crusoe, looking like a cross between a horse and a seal with Shrek-like ears, will incite endless coos from many people. But looking back at the select few Hollywood creatures that had risen to become pop culture icons, do we have space in our hearts for Crusoe? (Maybe until the kung-fu fighting Panda hits our screen.)

Gizmo from Gremlins

Gizmo was a pet mogwai (essentially the Chinese word for monster) given to Billy by his father. This bundle of joy is everything ‘cute’ should be – round, pint-size, furry and with big pleading eyes. That is until you get water on it or feed it after midnight. The former would spawn off a litter of mogwais. The latter would turn them into gremlins, the sinister reptile-skin nuisance prone to mischief and murder.

The spawns of Gizmo were more cunning in that they tricked Billy into feeding them after midnight. As they grew in number, the evil mogwais wrecked havoc on the town led by an alpha male named Stripe. While many scenes were criticized to be a tad too violent for children, the critics loved its dark humour. It is in fact one of the pioneers of monster horror meets comedy.

Gizmo became so popular that the movie generated a sequel, several video games, action figures, trading cards and not to mention, a spew of other monster movies such as Critters and Munchies. It was also rumoured that the talking doll Furby was a copy of Gizmo (which was later denied by Warner Bros). But in retrospect, they do look very alike.

E.T. from, well, E.T.

Easily one of the most iconic science fiction films ever, E.T. shares a lot of plot similarities with The Water Horse. Here, a lonely boy, Elliott, befriended an alien who was stranded on Earth. In the process of helping the alien return home, Elliott and his siblings had to protect it from their mother and the government.

Inspired by the director Steven Spielberg’s childhood imaginary friend, E.T. may not be as alien as it appears to be. We can easily relate to it, especially in scenes where it learned English from watching Sesame Street or when it got intoxicated from drinking beer the first time.

But what really touched us was the moment when E.T. pointed a finger at Elliott’s heart and said, ‘I’ll be right here’, before boarding the spaceship. No offence but E.T. epitomizes the definition of ‘cute’ everyone jokes about – ugly but adorable. Still, we have grown fonder of it throughout the years, simply because it occupies a defining period in our growing up years.

Gollum from Lord of the Rings

Admit it. You have, in one point or another, emulated Gollum while uttering the immortal words ‘my precious’, either over your newly bought mobile phone or the last fishball on the plate. Ever since the release of ‘The Two Towers’, the second installment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Gollum had single-handedly started the catchphrase of the decade.

However, we have to agree that Gollum isn’t a furball that we would love hugging to sleep. Still, he stole our hearts because we felt pity for him. His obsession with the ring had twisted his hobbit body into a mummified dwarf with serious hair loss. Besides his menace, we did see his kind side when he guided Sam and Frodo to the Black Gate. Gollum’s split personalities and his internal struggle between good and evil just made us sympathise with him even more. Don’t we all have a soft spot for flawed characters that has some resemblance of a good side?

Jar Jar Binks from The Star Wars

Do a search online and you’ll find many spoofs and websites plotting to kill Jar Jar Binks. Yet, despite the disapproval from critics and hardcore fans, Jar Jar Binks managed to establish itself as one of the more popular creatures among Star Wars’ horde of hundreds.

It is no secret that this gangly, funny-talking creature was intentionally created as comic relief to appeal to children. With a horse face, a pair of eyes mounted on stalks and long, floppy ears, Jar Jar Binks may not be the handsomest creature around but his silly, clumsy demeanor tickled our fancy.

Many of his antiques ended up doing good, albeit unintentionally. In the beginning, Jar Jar Binks was a nobody banished from his underwater home on Planet Naboo. He later travelled with Jedi Master Qui-Gon Jinn on his mission and rose to become an idealistic politician representing his home planet in the Galactic Senate. His fate is still unknown as the movie did not reveal what happened to him save for a brief cameo at Padme Amidala’s funeral in Episode III.

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The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep opens Thursday, April 3^rd