I got a made for tv feel from it too, but I still enjoyed it. It wasn't great, but I had some fun with it at parts. The kids in my theatre were all cheering and I've never experienced that before. It seems like a lot of people are calling this a terrible movie and I really don't think it is. It's not great, but it's not exactly bad. Underwhelming perhaps, but the creature was nice and fun. :p
It is a success for the audience it is attended for. The kids loved it, and I thought it was a good story. It also gets in the environmental aspects of saving our water. Avoid pollution.