zakthomasnz A film that has no allegories or political commentary shoehorned in, just a film about rabbits. Yet so much depth is applied to this film from the incredibly dark themes, of rabbits being in a constant state of survival and dealing with serious issues like PTSD etc. the film may seem violent or horrid but I found that it actually is able to teach us a lot. Whether the topic be death or the cruelty of the world, this film boasts haunting imagery yet is filled with so much heart. Incredibly worthwhile for all ages (depending on how mature the child is though, of course).

nekosensei There's been some confusion over the years about whether or not Richard Adams' original novel and this animated adaptation are suitable for young children. I'm firmly in the "no" camp, even though schools, libraries and recently the UK's Channel Five have been marketing it that way. Adams' novel is really a story about combat soldiers, creatively transposed onto the natural history of rabbits, and though Adams claims he originally wrote it for his own kids, your approach to parenting (and your children's level of tolerance for depictions of loveable animals in constant terror for their lives and being maimed and killed in numerous sudden, violent ways) is likely to be diferent.Obviously there are people who think that any story about animals is suitable for kids, even if it depicts the suffering or death of animals because suffering and death are a part of life and kids need to learn about it sometime. I would reply that this is true, but it's also cruel to expose children to movies that have a well-established track record of giving them nightmares, as this film does. Anyway you'd be giving them a distorted view of the lives of animals, which are NOT all about fear, suffering and death. Rabbits spend most of their lives eating (including their own poop). They also do routine work (they have to dig those burrows after all), play, mate and have babies--a lot of them. You don't see this in "Watership Down," because as I say it's a fable about war, not a natural history lesson. Another point: females are nearly invisible in the story, so not only is half of the life cycle of rabbits cut out, it's not even a proper depiction of war, which despite the conventions of war stories that Adams was drawing on, has always involved women combatants, whether in the regular army or not.

Irishchatter As an adult, I think showing this to children would scare them and of course would upset them. I'm very much an animal lover myself and all I have think of when watching this movie, was always the fear for the rabbits sake like. I know it's a cartoon but it does show you what it's like in the bunny rabbit world.You honestly wouldn't think a gorgeous cartoon like this would be so violent! The reason why I watched this movie, was only because it was seen on Danny Darko. I'm just glad that it was never mentioned or that I saw it from my childhood. Honestly it could probably haunt me and give me nightmares every night. I would consider this a really sad and dark movie, I actually am trying not to have tears on my eyes after watching this. It's probably best not for animal lovers to see this!

Leofwine_draca WATERSHIP DOWN is a proper children's animation, made as it should be. Adapted from the classic Richard Adams novel, it tells the story of a group of likable rabbits who discover that their warren is about to be destroyed. They set off on an epic journey to find a new home, one that is fraught with danger along the way.There's no sugar-coasted Disney nonsense here, no sickly sweet sentimentality or the like. Instead, this is a frightening film for the kids to watch. There's swearing, the constant threat of danger, violence, bloodshed, and yes, death. But these are all the things that make it such a memorable production, equalled only by the likes of Studio Ghibli.This 1978 production has a charm all of its own. The simple animation harks back to the good old days and is charming in itself. The all-star cast of British voice actors is excellent and brings out the nuance of the characters. The inclusion of the song Bright Eyes is the icing on the cake. This is moving and atmospheric in equal measure. My only complaint is that a lot of the novel is rushed or skipped through for timing reasons, but I can fully understand why.