Ireland’s hardest working actor Liam Neeson, 57, rules from beneath the ocean waves this weekend.

Neeson's new movie "Ponyo," sees the actor taking on the role of wizard in this animated fairy tale.

Neeson's character, Fujimoto, lives in a city below the waves and roils against humans who he blames for spreading misfortune and pollutions,

Ponyo, the star of the movie, is a half-girl, half-fish and Neeson and Cate Blanchett are her anxious parents.

Ponyo - voiced by Miley Cyrus's sister Noah - abandons her home beneath the sea to find out what life is like at the shore.

Little Noah, who appeared with big sister Miley at the infamous pole dance this week, is truly believeable as the goldfish diva while Neeson gives a beautifully voiced performance as Ponyo’s tough but doting father.

His anger at the people dumping toxic waste into the oceans is so keenly expressed (and animated) that it’s hard not to imagine that he is expressing his private beliefs.

The film is quiet and magical and reminds us that the great big world that delighted us as children has the power to do so always.