Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
Director: Russell Crowe, Universal Pictures, Entertainment One.
It has been 107 years since the Gallipoli landings, and The Water Diviner is one historical creative drama with significant appeal. Not a war film as such, it will resonate with many as it deals with the consequences of war, particularly for those families whose loved ones never returned.
Based on true events, it tells the story of one of the first Australian pilgrimages to the Anzac battlefields. A grieving father travels to Turkey to try and locate his three missing sons after the Battle of Gallipoli.
Four years have passed since Gallipoli and Victorian farmer Joshua Connor (Crowe, (Gladiator, The Insider, A Beautiful Mind) grieves over the loss of his sons. Further tragedy strikes after his wife, still inconsolable after the family loss, takes her own life.
The deciding factor then comes into play as Joshua becomes resolute about going to Turkey, finding the remains of his sons and bringing them back for burial. After arriving in Istanbul, he meets others who have also suffered losses. However, subtle shades of romance filter through when he meets beautiful young widow Ayshe (Kurlenko, Quantum of Solace) and her son, Orhan, and a Turkish officer Major Hasan (Yilmaz Erdogan), who fought against Connor’s sons and now may be their father’s only hope in finding closure.
It was a project of passion for Crowe, who made his directorial debut with this motion picture. The Academy Award-winning actor makes a striking mark as he takes charge behind the camera and acts in it as well.
Cinematographer Andrew Lesnie (The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogies) transports you to picturesque Turkey where much of the action occurs. Worthy Australian talent also includes Jai Courtney (Unbroken) and Ryan Corr (Wolf Creek).
While it is not a conservative interpretation of the Gallipoli knowledge, the story is fundamentally correlated to the nation that continually remembers those who honourably fell in Turkey during World War I. Nevertheless, we get a fresh comprehension of the atrocities that all the soldiers had to endure, both during and after the torturous conflict.
The tempo that filters through the narrative has allusions of remorse, frustrated promise and shortfall. It’s a sincere, mournful celebration of a country that turned the pain of loss into strength.
- The Water Diviner is streaming on Foxtel and Netflix
