Review of The Water Diviner (2014) by Callum H — 05 Jan 2015

Its been a somewhat decent year for Australian cinema; a fact which, as an Australian, I'm happy to report of. The undoubtable highlight for our minuscule industry was Jennifer Kent's incredible horror film, The Babadook, which was fueled by an insanely impressive performance from Essie Davis, and dark and harrowing direction and production design from Kent and Alex Holmes respectively. We also had the pretty darn good time travel flick Predestination, which despite performances which I didn't find completely compelling, as well as a whole lot of exposition, managed to win me over thanks to one of the better final acts of the year. Now, for the finale of the year comes Russell Crowe's directorial debut in The Water Diviner; a picture penned by screenwriters Andrew Anastasios and Andrew Knight, and starring Crowe, as well as Olga Kurylenko and Jai Courtney. The film follows Joshua (Crowe), a father whose three sons went off to World War I and supposedly died at the battle of Gallipoli. After his wife commits suicide from grief, Joshua decides to embark on a journey to Turkey to find his son's remains, and give them a proper burial. Along the way, he comes across a country which is still in mourning for its own dead, as well as one that has had to battle a warring Greece straight after the first Great War. He endures love lost, found and embraced.

The Water Diviner was a film I was looking forward to greatly. Who wouldn't? Russell Crowe has been involved in so many films over the years, that it seems as if he'd surely caught onto the many tricks of the trade. Unfortunately, that is not entirely the case. The Water Diviner is a film which contains its fair share of highlights, but is weighed down by a cliched plot, terrible pacing, shoddy editing, moments of weak acting and a score and sound mix which never really work. On a technical front, it is one of the least impressive Australian films I've ever seen. It's obvious that Crowe is an amateur in regards to directing, as he lacks finesse, consistency and a clear, distinct visual style that accompanies a story which is often sentimental at its heart. The editing all throughout lacks conviction, and it lessens the impact of much of the films impressive cinematography; whilst there are numerous beautiful images scattered all throughout the running time, Crowe's lack of self-assurance means that he is unwilling to hold the shot for as long as it takes to soak in. His cutting is frantic and always seeking to pick up the pace, but in doing so, he misses moments to truly sit back and reflect.

The cinematography as a whole is acceptable, at the very least. Crowe utilizes wide lenses, and allows us to see the landscape and size of the huge locations he is utilizing. There are some great practical effects that sit well alongside some beautiful, full-bodied locations that are absolutely beautiful on screen. So yes, in regards to this technical component, The Water Diviner often succeeds. Where it falls down most majorly though is its story and the way that it progresses. The first fifteen minutes of the picture are heartfelt, emotional, well-acted and well-shot. We're introduced to the beauty of the Australian outback and the ruggedness of Gallipoli from the onset, and the scope of these locations are contrasted with the themes of friendship and intimacy explored initially. Even the flashbacks where we see Crowe's sons running into battle are well executed, despite their lack of foreshadowing and jarring inclusions. And then the film progresses to the Turkish component of the story, and it all falls apart. It becomes cliched, conventional, predictable; take whichever word you wish to use, for it describes the film. It's never enthralling in its genericisms either, and the primary protagonist loses his compelling nature as the film wears on.

Other characters suffer from too little development, and this proves to be a constant all throughout the running time. The performances from those playing the Turkish side of things are decent, particularly Yilmaz Erdogan, who is fantastic as a Turkish officer. Kurylenko though is often incredibly forced, her character never fitting into this story of mate-ship, camaraderie and family perfectly. Her development alongside Crowe's protagonist is obviously forced, and her resolution is completely predictable; anyone above the age of ten will be able to predict it from a mile away. It's disappointing, considering all the tools at Crowe's disposal.

All that said, there are moments of genuine sincerity from the screenplay, the performers and the direction. Every now and then, Crowe grows some balls and lets a shot carry out, giving you no option but to completely lose yourself in the emotion and story, and forget about the technical inconsistencies and faults. The final few scenes (before the ending sequence) are absolutely heartbreaking, the stories of the brothers coming to the forefront, and representing the emotional peak of the film. Why couldn't we get more moments like these?! The opportunity for a truly great Australian war story, at least one on the same level as Peter Weir's exceptional Gallipoli, was squandered by a sub-par screenplay and direction which is too littered with faults to give a pass to. If you've been anticipating the release, go ahead, but otherwise, steer clear.