The Water Diviner movie poster
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The Water Diviner
The Water Diviner movie poster

The Water Diviner Movie Review

Now available on Blu-ray and DVD (Buy on Amazon)

Russell Crowe directs the post-war drama The Water Diviner, because when you are the director you can cast a supermodel and former Bond girl to play the Turkish innkeeper your own character gets to flirt with.

The Water Diviner is about an Australian dude who sets out to discover what happened to his three sons in Gallipoli (hint: many Australians who fought in the Battle of Gallipoli died) after his wife commits suicide. There he befriends a Turkish family and attempts to navigate the murky bureaucracy established by the Turkish and British governments.

To call The Water Diviner a take it or leave it experience would be... well, accurate. Adequately written, directed and acted, the movie is a serviceable drama that does little to offend, and even less to excite. Crowe has been better in other things, but he's fine; as a director, The Water Diviner serves as an okay introductory piece, but there's little here to suggest a sense of innovation or unique/trademark style.

The story itself is the film's weakness; The Water Diviner just isn't particularly interesting. The movie plays to a fairly traditional beat, with Crowe's character serving as a fish out of water to some degree while he forms a bond with the foreign beauty that's taking care of him. The chemistry between Crowe and Olga Kurylenko is one of the film's selling points, but their relationship is underdeveloped. The story's major crux--Crowe seeking the whereabouts of his sons--is far from enthralling.

As shrugworthy as all its elements are, The Water Diviner moves at a steady clip. It's harmless, mildly entertaining and not without its fine moments. But in the end, it's a movie that is easily forgettable.

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.

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