Waterworld (1995)

Strap on your goggles and hoist the sails, this week on Born to Watch, the crew dives into a post-apocalyptic puddle with their Waterworld (1995) Review, Kevin Costner’s legendary aquatic epic that soaked Universal Studios in ambition, cash, and controversy. Whitey, G Man, and Damo reunite to wade through the waves of cinematic history, revisiting a film as infamous for its behind-the-scenes chaos as it is for its soggy storytelling.

From the jump, the team questions Waterworld's place in pop culture infamy. Once touted as the most expensive movie ever made, this maritime Mad Max-on-water starred Costner at the peak of his fame, but was it his creative apex or the beginning of his soggy descent? The guys don’t pull punches, balancing deep dives into production lore with their trademark irreverent humour.

Whitey sets the tone by confronting the bloated ambition of the project: “Has any Hollywood star become so famous with a catalogue with so many peaks and troughs?” Cue a wide-ranging Costner retrospective, comparing the golden days of Field of Dreams and The Untouchables to the indulgent excesses of The Postman and yes, Waterworld. The verdict? Costner might’ve been drinking his own Kool-Aid, filtered through a urine distillation machine, of course.

G Man leads the crew through the absurd plot, where the Earth is drowned, the polar caps are melted, and dry land is a mythic memory. Costner plays the Mariner, a grim, gilled loner with webbed feet and a personality drier than the lost continent he’s searching for. The podcast doesn’t shy away from the film’s narrative flaws: characters with no backstory, Mad Max rip-offs, and a complete lack of chemistry between the leads, most notably between Costner and Jeannie Triplehorn, affectionately known as “Jeannie Triple Blurter” by the team.

Speaking of performances, Dennis Hopper’s turn as the Deacon is eviscerated with delight. Compared to his electric villain in Speed just a year prior, Hopper here is an oily cartoon, piloting a rust-bucket Exxon Valdez filled with chain-smoking goons. “It’s a bad Beyond Thunderdome,” declares Whitey, and the panel doesn’t disagree.

The gang revels in the film’s infamous production disasters: hurricanes, a constantly rewritten script, Costner’s massive creative control, and his falling out with director Kevin Reynolds. G Man reminds us of the legendary quote about Costner directing himself: “Now he gets to work with his favourite actor and his favourite director.” Ouch.

Despite the floundering script, there are moments that the Born to Watch crew appreciates. The practical effects, like the massive floating Atoll set and Costner’s tricked-out trimaran, get nods of approval, even if the action sequences are undercut by choppy editing and goofy stunts. And the team can’t help but laugh at the iconic “pee filtration scene,” the rope-assisted bungee jump climax, and the infamous underwater city reveal, which defies all logic and basic physics.

One of the episode’s standout sections is “Question Time,” where the trio tackles the film’s most baffling plot points: How does the Mariner’s boat outrun jet skis? How does dry land remain uninhabited? And why, oh why, would someone spend their life searching for paradise only to leave it five minutes after finding it?

The boys also pay tribute to the lesser-known cast and crew: a young Jack Black in a blink-and-miss-it role, Tina Majorino (aka the Enola of Napoleon Dynamite fame), and the brilliant yet misfiring score from James Newton Howard. “He dialled it in harder than Dennis Hopper did,” quips Damo.

By the end, the Born to Watch gang reaches a consensus: Waterworld is a cinematic curiosity, too ambitious to dismiss outright, too flawed to celebrate, and just insane enough to warrant a watch. Maybe once.

So whether you're a fan of ‘90s action epics or just here to marvel at cinematic misfires, this Waterworld deep dive is a splash of nostalgic chaos you won’t want to miss.

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts!

Join the conversation:

• Is Waterworld an underrated cult classic or a floating disaster?
• Would you survive in a world covered by the ocean?
•  And seriously, how does that boat outrun jet skis?

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