[5]

Even when a movie doesn't come together, I sometimes admire the effort and ambition so much, that I have to give a little extra credit. Waterworld is one of those movies. First let's focus on the positive: The atoll sequence is great, the boat and airplane battle is pretty good, James Newton Howard's score is awesome, and Dennis Hopper steals the show. On the other hand, the film is mired by implausibility, it's poorly plotted, and its protagonists are tragically deficient in the personality department.

The screenplay never takes off after the first act. There is little to propel the story forward once Kevin Costner, Jeanne Tripplehorn, and little Tina Majorino team up together. The characters simply aren’t engaging, and not for lack of potential (the surrogate family concept is one of my favorites). Costner’s heroic Mariner character does not develop as well as I’d like — he’s too mean for too long, and softens too suddenly. Costner probably wasn’t the best man for the job.

Even though the movie’s a hot mess, there’s nothing else quite like it. It’s worth watching, if for no other reason, just to get a little sense of what post-apocalyptic oceanic living might be like.