Rotten
It's clear that Russell Crowe has poured his heart and soul into the historical romance The Water Diviner, his first feature as a director. If only the film were better.
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine/Vulture
The Water Diviner
To honour a promise. To find his sons. To make his peace.
2014 · 1h 52m · R
Drama, War
Directed by
Russell Crowe
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The Water Diviner
Overview
In 1919, Australian farmer Joshua Connor travels to Turkey to discover the fate of his three sons, reported missing in action. Holding on to hope, Joshua must travel across the war-torn landscape to find the truth and his own peace.
Director and cast
- Russell Crowe Director
- Russell Crowe as Joshua Connor
- Olga Kurylenko as Ayshe
- Yılmaz Erdoğan as Major Hasan
- Cem Yılmaz as Sgt. Jemal
- Jai Courtney as Lt. Colonel Hughes
- Ryan Corr as Arthur "Art" Connor
- James Fraser as Edward Connor
- Ben O'Toole as Henry Connor
- Steve Bastoni as Omer
- Salih Kalyon as Dr. Ibrahim
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
62%
Tomatometer
Rotten
A sloggy, heartfelt piece of quasi-magical realist storytelling.
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor
Fresh
Crowe strives to strike a universal chord about the futility of war. Simplistic? Maybe. But in crafting a film about the pain a parent feels after losing a child in battle, Crowe transcends borders and politics.
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Rotten
Crowe needs, badly, a director to push back against his default mode: The script for The Water Diviner posits that Joshua Connor is the most interesting man in the frame at all times, but Crowe's performance doesn't earn that.
Daniel D'Addario, TIME Magazine
Fresh
Even slightly self-censored, its images of broken cities and the walking wounded is a strong restating of the film's message: There is no such thing as a "good" war. There's only war - sometimes necessary, sometimes not. And always inhuman.
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger
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