Waterworld (HD DVD)

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Sometimes, I wonder if I am the biggest fan of "Waterworld." Nobody seems to appreciate this film as much as I do. It puzzles me. This film has it all, loud explosions, cool post-apocalyptic sets, Kevin Costner with gills, Dennis Hopper with funny lines and Jeanne Tripplehorn. The list goes on. Okay, so maybe you have to check your brain at the door and just sit back and allow yourself to be entertained and not think too much into what you are watching, but I feel "Waterworld" is just pure entertainment. So many people regard the "Mad Max" series as being so wonderful. This is "Mad Max" on the high seas, but with more action, better effects and just flat out more fun. "Waterworld" is a perfect example of a summer popcorn movie. Still, why am I the only person that loves it so?

Yes, Kevin Costner went through directors like, errr, water. The film was bloated and well overbudget. There were reshoots and supposedly the film´s star was a total pain in the arse to work with. It was hoakey and had enough plot holes to sink it deep to the bottoms of the watery world it presents. Some of the humor hits way below the belt, such as the Exxon Valdez and the horrible accents by the watery drifters. There is so much in this film that defies logic and makes absolutely no sense, but dammit, it is fun! How can you not enjoy Dennis Hopper´s ride through the ´Deez on a car that no longer has rubber and relies more on manpower than horsepower to drive through the oddly floating tanker. Speaking of the Exxon Valdez, how is it again that it is sea worthy?

The Mariner´s boat is one of the cleverest vehicles to ever be presented on a film. It has really nifty gadgets and is a character on its own right. Sure, there are a lot of physics it seems to ignore and I´m not sure it should even be seaworthy, but I really enjoy watching the little devices strewn about by Kevin Costner´s character to allow him to escape the gas-powered smokers and fight off pirates who want to take his ski boots and bits and pieces of magazine and other items of dry land that have so much value. Of course, since he is a mutant and can scoop up all the dirt he ever needs, the Mariner has the means to be the richest person afloat. He can collect artifacts and reminders of a world that is long forgotten and only rumored to exist by the ragtag survivors of a world destroyed by floods. Why is it that those on the floating atolls find dirt to be of so much value?

Forget the occasionally horrid dialogue, plot holes you can sail a tanker through and general bout of coincidence and disbelievability that is needed to make full sense of this film and appreciate the world it has created. There are certain movies out there that were intended to dig your hands into over-buttered popcorn that has more fat than a McDonald´s Big Mac. There are certain movies that are best enjoyed with your teeth glued together by Ju-Ju Fruit. There are movies that demand to be watched with a 512 ounce soda that comes with free refills (who can go through even one of those humungous sodas?) and are best watched with friends who like to laugh and enjoy unnecessary violence, explosions and bad one-liners. "Waterworld" is one of these films.

I love this movie. I find it terribly fun and horribly entertaining. I´ve watched it again and again and saw it twice in theaters. I don´t feel it is bad. I feel it is intended to tell a wondrous story that is beyond belief. It is meant to be different from all of those films that take themselves so seriously. It is an apocalypse on the water; Mad Max with sails. "Waterworld" is a fun, fun film that is overlooked by snobs who stick their nose up at good silly fun. Remember when running around your living room in circles was exciting and mom would yell at you for doing so? Well, I look at "Waterworld" like that. I enjoy the hell out of it and everybody keeps yelling at me and telling me to stop! See that score of a 10 for Film Value? That is my protest.