Movies - Waterworld

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	Movies - Waterworld

Waterworld was a 1995 film that was co-produced by Kevin Costner and directed by Kevin Reynolds. Problems encountered during filming massively escalated its budget, and it held the unfortunate distinction of being the most expensive film ever made (at the time), causing some critics to dub the movie "Fishtar" and "Kevin's Gate" (references to the notorious flops Ishtar
and Heaven's Gate
). With a budget of $175 million, the film only grossed a meager $88 million at the U.S. box office, and was initially considered to be one of the biggest flops ever made. However, despite this poor start, the film was more successful overseas, and ultimately recouped its budget. In 2005 dollars, (USD), the budget for the movie was $229 million, and grossed $115.3 million at the U.S. box office and $229.9 million at the foreign box office, making a profit of more than $115 million.

Waterworld is a science fiction film in the post-apocalyptic genre. It has frequently been called "Mad Max
on Jet skis".

Synopsis

Some time in the unknown future, the polar ice caps have melted due to global warming, and the Earth is almost entirely covered with water. The surviving humans have forgotten the past and believe in a modified creation belief in which God created the world as a ball covered with water, but that there is also 'dryland' somewhere on Earth.

The surviving people can be classified into four groups:

Drifters, who ply the water in boats, collecting things and trading with one another;
Atoll Dwellers, who live in large floating constructs called atolls (in the movie, pronounced 'A-toll'). These atolls are not to be confused with the natural coral formations of the same name.
Smokers are pirates who inhabit abandoned oil tankers. They are called such because of the smoke they make by using oil-powered equipment, such as Jet skis, and because they all smoke and consider cigarettes one of the most valuable treasures to be stolen.Smokers also dismiss the concept of evolution when confronted by the main character because of his fish like physicality.
Slavers are mentioned in the movie but not shown. Their name and the fear that they inspire suggests that they kidnap and enslave people.

The antihero is a drifter (Kevin Costner) who comes in to an atoll to trade for resin. For most of the film, he has no name, though some refer to him as "the Mariner". He is a mutant of some sort, with webbed feet (which sometimes actually occur in people) and gills (which do not). The atollers discover that he is a mutant. Fearing him, they condemn him to be "recycled." At that moment, however, the smokers arrive in a raid, and they also bring in an M50 Quadmount to shoot down the atoll. Having been tipped off by one of their spies, they are in search of a young girl living there named Enola, who appears to have the map to dryland tattooed on her back. How she got there and who marked the tattoo is never explained—although at the end some educated guesses can be made. Near the end of the movie, in the dwelling of Enola's parents tatoo implements, dyes, and designs that match her tatoo are found. Her caretaker, Helen, is a woman in her twenties or thirties, and they plan to escape with Gregor, the atoll's resident astrologer, for dryland (if they can find it) because, like the Mariner, they don't fit in properly.

Unfortunately, Gregor's escape balloon is released too early (with him on it), leaving Helen and Enola stranded on the atoll as the smokers overrun it. They release the Mariner and escape with him on his large trimaran by taking the Quadmount and turning it into the Deacon's boat, causing the Deacon to lose an eye. The Mariner is greatly displeased with their company, despite their rescuing him from certain death and even Helen's offer to have sex with him in exchange for protection.

Chasing them is the Deacon, who is the "captain" of one of the derelict oil tankers, the Exxon Valdez, nicknamed the 'deez. Deacon also wants to get to dryland, and has a number of skirmishes with the Mariner in his attempts to get Enola back.

Helen, meanwhile, wants to know where all the dryland went. The Mariner, who can breathe underwater (due to his gills), puts her in a diving bell made out of plastic and swims down to a sunken city (actually the city of Denver) on the ocean floor to show her. While they are diving, the Deacon and his men board his boat. When they float back to the surface, he orders them to talk about what they know regarding the tattoo and dryland. They find and capture Enola. Since they both refuse to talk, the Deacon has his crew burn the Mariner's boat and shoot at the pair, forcing them to dive deep to live. Since Helen cannot breathe water, the Mariner offers to "breathe for the both of us" which results in a prolonged kiss of life underwater, while bullets shoot down around them.

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Movies - Waterworld

Synopsis

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