Russell Crowe’s directorial debut, The Water Diviner , has seen great success in Crowe’s native homeland of Australia and was named the country’s top grossing film of 2014, netting $5.6 million at the box as of December 31, 2014.
It also recently won several awards at the 4th annual AACTA , or Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor Y?lmaz Erdo?an, and Best Costume Design.
Yet with all of the buzz surrounding The Water Diviner , the U.S. will see only limited showings starting April 24, 2015.
The historical fictional drama is set in Turkey 1919 during the aftermath of WWI. Crowe plays Joshua Connor, an Australian farmer who travels to Turkey upon hearing that his sons were killed during the fighting at Gallipoli in hopes of bringing their remains back home.
Russell’s character has a knack for finding things throughout the film, the most obvious being water, but his talents are put to the test when he finds himself in the war-torn region of Gallipoli in search of answers regarding the whereabouts of his sons’ remains.
With the help of hotel owner Ayshe (Olga Kurylenko), with whom Connor forges a romance, and a Turkish officer who is himself a veteran of the war, Joshua discovers the bodies of two of his sons, with the possibility that one is still alive after being captured during the battle.
The film has been hailed as being a fantastic work of historical fiction, but The Water Diviner has also come under fire from critics who claim the film is implausible and sentimental.
The ABC (Australian Broadcasting Company) reports that while the film is doing well in Turkey, even outperforming recently released films regarding the battle at Gallipoli, Greek and Australian critics alike have condemned the film, saying it glosses over the Armenian Genocide and considers it an exercise in myth-making.
But Russell Crowe is certainly no stranger to controversy. As reported by the Inquisitr The Water Diviner star has ruffled more than a few feathers with recent remarks that Hollywood actresses need seek age-appropriate roles if they want to continue to work in the industry.
This, of course, sparked a flurry of comments and debate about the unrealistic demographics the industry has regarding movie roles, with actress Jessica Chastain being quite vocal about her disagreements regarding Crowe’s comments.
While both the film and its director are busy making waves of controversy, the numbers don’t lie. The film has achieved much success worldwide and shows no signs of slowing down.
[Image courtesy of Movie Pilot ]
