Wes's Grade: C+"The Water Diviner" a handsome but whitewashed look at World War I
I enjoy historical, fact-based dramas that have an entertaining mix of romance, drama and action. The new drama "The Water Diviner," directed by and starring Oscar-winner Russell Crowe strives for that and on some levels succeeds, but ultimately fails in overlooking some crucial facts about Turkey in World War I. Set in 1919 at the close of World War I, Australian farmer and water diviner (Russell Crowe) travels to Turkey after the Battle of Gallipoli to try and locate his three missing sons. The modestly entertaining "The Water Diviner" is an epic film that some may enjoy, at least for those who may not know their history. The slick, well-acted production (based on a novel of the same name) is handsomely filmed and scored, filled with a poignant, fictional story (ala "Saving Private Ryan") and peppered with some good action scenes that use a real battle, the Battle of Gallipoli, as the backdrop for which Crowe's widowed character goes to search for his sons. Crowe, who gives a strong performance here, has always been a stellar actor and can add competent director to the list, and he is striving for an "Out of Africa" Sydney Pollack-esque feel to it, and he would've succeeded with a better film had he not egregiously overlooked some important facts about the time period. Namely, the film overlooks the Armenian genocide, in which the Ottoman reign killed 1.5 million Armenians in World War I, providing a template for what Hitler would do later on; on that note, it's akin to making a film about Germany or Poland during World War II and not including anything about the plight of the Jews. Cinematic license is one thing, but not a single reference to this regrettable historical act borders on the shameful. Cinematically, that is a shame too, since Crowe's "The Water Diviner," a modestly entertaining and affecting story about reuniting family and finding new love, is a serviceable film otherwise. If you see it, I'd recommend also reading up on the historical time frame, to give you balance to history from a film that doesn't provide it.
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