Waterland

1992

Waterland

Critics Consensus

No consensus yet.

53%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 15

61%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 1,743
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Waterland Photos

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Movie Info

Based on the novel by Graham Swift, this drama follows the past and present crises of schoolteacher Tom Crick (Jeremy Irons), who attempts to resolve the problems in his own life and the apathy of his students by relating stories of his troubled childhood in the English Fens (a marshy region in Britain).

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Cast

Jeremy Irons
as Tom Crick
Ethan Hawke
as Matthew Price
Sinead Cusack
as Mary
John Heard
as Scott
Cara Buono
as Judy
Grant Warnock
as Young Tom
Lena Headey
as Young Mary
David Morrissey
as Crick
Pete Postlethwaite
as Henry Crick
Callum Dixon
as Freddie Parr
Sean McGuire
as Peter
Ross McCall
as Terry
Camilla Hebditch
as Shirley
Maggie Gyllenhaal
as Maggie Ruth
Stewart Richman
as Ernest Atkinson
Garner "Skip" Thomas
as Publican
Siri Neal
as Helen Atkinson
Gareth Thomas
as Publican
Susannah Fellows
as Rebecca Scott
Colin Bruce
as Guest at Dinner Party
Kate Harper
as Guest at Dinner Party
Bradley Lavelle
as Guest at Dinner Party
Jana Sheldon
as Guest at Dinner Party
Scott Children
as Guest at Dinner Party
Alesh Hlozek
as Guest at Dinner Party
Kimberley Lakey
as Guest at Dinner Party
Tessa Wilkins
as Guest at Dinner Party
Tony Vogel
as Stan Booth
Paul Haigh
as RAF Man 1
Giles Thomas
as RAF Man 2
Larry John Meyers
as Senior Police Officer
Tina Benko
as Baby's mother
Rohn Thomas
as Barman
Matyelok Gibbs
as Martha Clay
Jolyon Stephenson
as Joe
Nicholas Boyce
as Leroy
Miguel Montalvo
as Stephen Bates
Alison Everns
as Alison
Latoya Heard
as Julie
Kalvin Palmer
as Marshall
Jennifer Meyer
as Sara
Christine Christie
as Angie
Vanessa Pfulger
as Vanessa
Monique Idelbird
as Girl
Joe Collis
as Boy
Paul Hardy
as Boy
Eric Dumbaugh
as Boy
Hasmin Stremikis
as Boy
Stephanie Anderson
as Other Pupil
Fernando Cassas
as Other Pupil
Jeff Hoffman
as Other Pupil
J. Michael Hunter
as Other Pupil
Anne Kilpack
as Other Pupil
Sara Ittmann
as Other Pupil
Nadia Siraj
as Other Pupil
Ron Thomas
as Barman
Josh Wheaton
as Other Pupil
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Critic Reviews for Waterland

All Critics (15) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (8) | Rotten (7)

  • A talented but terminally parched piece of literary cinema.

    Feb 23, 2012 | Full Review…

    Variety Staff

    Variety
    Top Critic

  • It's a brave endeavour, held together by Robert Elswit's poetic photography, and by Irons' authoritative impression of the crumbling desperation behind the chalk-dusted facade of a pensive history man.

    Jan 26, 2006 | Full Review…
    Time Out
    Top Critic

  • With a dazed, frightened expression and the keen sense that his life is coming undone, Mr. Irons's Tom becomes a rivetingly sad figure, and a sharp focus for the film's many reveries.

    May 20, 2003 | Rating: 3.5/5

    Janet Maslin

    New York Times
    Top Critic

  • The adaptation doesn't quite hold. But in this flashback narrative, set in England's beautiful eastern wetlands, there are many passages of filmic -- and geographic -- beauty.

    Jan 1, 2000 | Full Review…
    Washington Post
    Top Critic

  • The strange fact about "Waterland" is the way the performances and the dialogue are worthier than the story itself.

    Jan 1, 2000 | Rating: 2.5/4 | Full Review…

    Roger Ebert

    Chicago Sun-Times
    Top Critic

  • Swift's elegant, descriptive phrases coexist inelegantly with classroom vulgarisms. And there almost making it all work as a portrait in despondency and realization is Irons, a walking requiem to lost innocence.

    Jan 1, 2000 | Full Review…

    Rita Kempley

    Washington Post
    Top Critic
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Audience Reviews for Waterland

  • Nov 24, 2010
    Based on the novel by Graham Swift - a wonderful British author - <i>Waterland</i> tells the story of a history teacher who tells his students as much about himself as he does history. What is strong about the novel is what is weak about the film. The novel explores a post-modern conception of history that suggests we get stuck in these endless spirals of ironic happenstance, and in order to understand it all, we must go back, and in order to understand what we see when we go back, we must go back farther and farther. There's a little bit of this in the film, but certainly not enough for the audience to understand Swift's point. Instead of a complex exploration of post-modern theory and history, we're left with a fairly basic film about a man dealing with the events of his childhood. And how does that story fair? Not badly. It has its moments of affecting drama, both in the present and the past, but it's devoid of any grand significance. Additionally, the ending is too intentionally vague. We're given to understand certain conclusions about these characters' futures, but we can't figure out how they get from the point A, when the credits roll, to the point B, which we are told will happen. What is more, the plot-line between Crick and Price ends in a disappointing cliche. Overall, I think I should like this film less than I do. In the end, I think the source material, Swift's book, is so good, and the performances by Irons, Cusack, and Warnock were good enough to make up for the failings of the screenwriter and director.
    Jim H Super Reviewer
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