Loch Ness

Loch Ness is a 1996 family drama film starring Ted Danson and Joely Richardson. It was written by John Fusco and directed by John Henderson. Plot At Loch Ness, Scotland, scientist Dr. Abernathy is killed by slipping off some rocks, after seeing something in the loch and taking a single photograph of it. Months later, American zoologist and freshman college tutor, Dr. John Dempsey, is asked to replace Abernathy and dispel the myth of the Loch Ness Monster. Dempsey is reluctant to do so, having ruined his career by trying to prove the existence of the Sasquatch. He agrees to go for the money, which would allow him to pay alimony to his ex-wife that ran off and pay an IRS debt, naming a newly discovered species of parasitic wasp after her. Arriving in Scotland, Dempsey meets Dr. Abernathy's assistant Adrian Foote, who fanatically believes in the monster. Dempsey rents a room at a local inn run by Laura McFetridge and her young daughter, Isabel, who grows close to him. He soon meets the other locals, fisherman Andy McLean, who aggressively comes to see Dempsey as a rival for Laura's affections; eccentric Gordon Shoals, who claims the monster is his property; and the Water Bailiff, who is highly protective of the legend, and tries to repeatedly sabotage Dempsey's efforts. Using state-of-the-art technology, Dempsey scans the whole loch, and is unable to find any trace of the monster. When he declares the end of the myth, Adrian angrily berates him, but Dempsey admits he wants to find the dinosaur to rebuild his career, left cynical by his failure to find the Sasquatch. Dempsey later receives Dr. Abernathy's camera, discovering the photo he took on the night he died – revealing it shows a dinosaur's flipper. He and Adrian venture out to search the loch again. After tracking a 40-foot-long object, it collides with and sinks the boat. Dempsey nearly drowns, but is rescued by an unseen creature, and the Water Bailiff. A thrilled Dempsey claims to have seen the monster.