I was one of those rare people it seems in 1995 when
WATERWORLD was released to theaters. I saw the trailer and looked forward to
it. The internet hadn’t taken over yet so bashing the film was limited to the
press and shows like ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT. All they could seem to focus on was
the expense of making the film. They were calling it a train wreck before
anyone had even seen it. I ignored it and went to the theater to see the film
and loved every minute of it. But before I get into all that what is the movie
about?
In the future the ice caps have melted and the world is now
covered in water. A lone mariner (Kevin Costner) sails the seas in his trimaran
looking for items to trade at various atolls that exists, bonded together ships
and such where groups of people live and continue to try and survive. Sailing
the seas as well are “smokers”, pirates who raid and kill to take what they
want. He escapes one of these groups and heads out to trade.
The atoll he comes across seems safe enough. The people
there exist, use their dead to renew their fertilizer pit and dream of a world
called Dryland. He trades the most precious commodity there is for chits, dry
soil. Taking his chits he goes to the nearby store and meets Helen (Jeanne
Tripplehorn) and her little girl Enola (Tina Majorino). A group of townspeople
question him and angry at his responses notice that he has gills; the Mariner
is a mutant, able to swim underwater. They capture and cage him, deciding he
must die.
But before that can happen smokers attack the atoll. They’re
searching for a girl one of their spies learned about. That girl is Enola and
she has a special tattoo on her back, one that is supposed to be the map to
Dryland. A battle follows and Helen’s friend Gregor (Michael Jeter) escapes in
a balloon he made but is unable to rescue Helen and Enola. Seeing him as her
only way out, she releases the Mariner and boards his trimaran and the three
escape.
The leader of the smokers is Deacon (Dennis Hopper) who is
wounded during the escape losing an eye. He now not only wants the girl with
the map but revenge for his loss. And he will do anything in his power to find
the Mariner and his passengers.
Nice set up, eh? So much more happens including the
interactions between the Mariner and his passengers, the search by Deacon and
the smokers and the fight sequences that take place not just with them but
other ships that come upon the trio. Through it all the Mariner begins to
change. He learns to become more human and the non-mutant humans with him learn
that he isn’t any different than they are. And all along the quest for Dryland
rumbles beneath everything.
So here is the deal. When the movie came out in 1995 Kevin
Costner was at the top of his game. He’d just come off of a huge string of hits
and was box office gold. Starting in 85 and through 94 he made SILVERADO, THE
UNTOUCHABLE, NO WAY OUT, BULL DURHAM, FIELD OF DREAMS, DANCES WITH WOLVES,
ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES, JFK, THE BODYGUARD and WYATT EARP. What I’ve
noticed about Hollywood, and especially the press, is that when a star reaches
a point like this they begin to try and tear them down. It’s as if they are
jealous of their success and suddenly none of the movies they make gets good
press. It doesn’t matter if the movie is good or not, they slam it and find
fault with it. This movie was Costner’s take down flick. After this film he
continued to make great movies but you’d never know that based on critic’s
reviews. He still does but don’t expect them to say so.
This movie has some amazing elements to it and that should
have been the focus. The concept was original and the work that the team behind
the cameras did to make it plausible was fantastic. The methods of filtering
body water to continue to drink it, the various ways the trimaran is able to be
controlled by one man (not really but it is in the film) and the locations
where survivors gather are so realistic and believable. That alone should have
made people marvel at the film.
But it offers more than that. There is a great story being
told here as well. Not just about those trying to survive but the humanizing of
a character far too long on his own. It also provides a new twist on an old
story at the same time, pirates searching for treasure and seeking a map to
find it. That’s as old as TREASURE ISLAND. But for me the best thing was that
the film harkened back to the swashbuckling films of Errol Flynn. As a die-hard
Flynn fan who still loves watching CAPTAIN BLOOD and THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN
HOOD this film presented that same sort of adventure. And Costner was up to it.
He fit the mold perfectly and yet go no credit for doing so.
The special effects here are mind boggling. The vehicles are
real enough to survive the sea and be shot on film. And speaking of the
cinematography is wonderful as well. Dean Semler shows why he is one of the top
directors of photography in the business. Kevin Reynolds also does a great job
here too, bringing all the elements together in the most marvelous ways.
If that weren’t enough there isn’t a cast member in here who
falters. Costner I’ve said enough about. Tripplehorn was still in the early
stage of her career having just been in THE FIRM with Tom Cruise. Hopper was at
his wildest and brings Deacon to life as no one else could have. And Majorino,
at the time only 10 years old, showed that she could keep up with the stars.
That she’s gone on to have a successful career is good news having had roles in
both VERONICA MARS and SCORPION on TV as well as the cult favorite NAPOLEON
DYNAMITE. Yes, that really is her!
So the movie’s been out on disc in the past and even on
blu-ray. So why would anyone want to pick up a new version of this film. Two
words should make that an easy answer: Arrow Video.
Yes Arrow Video has gone all out on this one. It’s not
enough that they treat it like they do all their releases making them the best
version possible. Oh no, they had to make this one special. How special? Let’s
begin with the fact that this is a 4k scan from the original camera negative
making it the most amazing looking version of the film since it was released.
But wait there’s more. There is not one, not two but THREE versions of the film
to be seen here. There is the original version at 2 hours and 15 minutes long.
Then there is the TV cut with an additional 40 minutes that includes
alternative footage. But then they went and made an extended European cut that
restored previously censored shots and dialogue to that TV cut making the film
run 2 hours and 57 minutes long! Take a breath!
Wow, pretty good. That should satisfy most people. Oh no,
there is more. More? Yes, more! There are 6 collector’s postcards, a
double-sided fold-out poster, a limited edition 60 page perfect bound book with
new writing by David J. Moore and Daniel Griffith with archival articles and
original reviews, a reversible sleeve with original and new artwork done by
Paul Shipper, MAELSTORM: THE ODYSSEY OF WATERWORLD a feature length making of
documentary on the film, an original archival featurette on the making of the
film, GLOBAL WARMING a featurette with film critic Glenn Kenny exploring the
subgenre of ecologically aware Hollywood films, production stills, visual
effects stills gallery and the original trailers and TV spots. Arrow, you’re
making everyone else look bad, keep it up!
I can’t begin to recommend this movie enough or this version
of it. As a fan it is a dream come true, a movie that deserved better than it
got. It’s easy when you’re not making the movie to criticize everything about
it and to ridicule it for going over budget. But the money spent at least ended
up on the screen. While I was only able to watch the first version of the film
so far I know I’ll be watching the other two in the next day or so. I finished
that first and can’t wait to get started on the next version. But it’s coming
out now and I need to let readers know. This is a great movie that you can now
re-discover or find for the first time. I suggest that you take the voyage to
Waterworld today.
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