Waterworld Movie Review

The Man From Atlantis meets Mad Max. Industry knives sharpened with glee before release, with some insiders calling this luck-impaired project “Fishtar” and “Kevin's Gate.” With an estimated $150 million budget, the film must look to overseas sales and secondary markets to make any money. Most of the budget does seem to have ended up on screen, which makes for a visually striking, and at times daunting, film. The ocean vistas and action scenes on water are spectacular. Costner, who did just about everything but cater the meals, stars as Mariner, a mutant who has developed the ability to breathe underwater via gills in order to survive in this water-covered world. He reluctantly helps human survivors search for the mythical Dryland, unknown since the polar ice caps melted, flooding the Earth. Forming an uneasy alliance with Helen (Jeanne Tripplehorne) and her young adopted daughter Enola (Tina Majorino), who has the map to Dryland tattooed on her back, the Mariner searches the oceans for Dryland. The bad guys are the Smokers, led by the evil Deacon played by Dennis Hopper, who can do these roles in his sleep. They too want to find Dryland, and want the map (and hence the girl) in order to find it. Of course, Mariner grows found of Helen and the girl, and ultimately must rescue them from the Smokers. The action, sets, and effects are stunning, but a poor script ultimately sinks this fish story.

1995 (PG-13) 135m/C Kevin Costner, Dennis Hopper, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tina Majorino, Michael Jeter, R.D. Call, Robert Joy; D: Kevin Reynolds; W: Peter Rader, Marc Norman, David N. Twohy; C: Dean Semler; M: James Newton Howard. Nominations: Academy Awards ‘95: Best Sound; Golden Raspberry Awards ‘95: Worst Picture, Worst Actor (Costner). VHS, LV MCA