Waterborne (2005)

Are we prepared for the next attack? When a suspected bio-terrorist attack contaminates L.A.'s water supply the city is cast into turmoil.Three interwoven stories show how far people will go to ensure their own survival. A Sikh storeowner and her son become victims of racial discrimination. Two-college students attempt to flea the increasingly chaotic atmosphere and in doing so test the limits of their friendship. A duo of National Guardsmen is forced to confront issues of patriotism as they become upholders of the peace during a citywide crisis. These three sets of relationships violently collide in a climactic finale that will forever change the lives of all involved.With outstanding performances and a stark original score by the band Dredg WATERBORNE is a gripping exploration of the effects of fear on society and on the individual.DVD Features:Widescreen FormatBehind the ScenesInterviewsInteractive MenusScene SelectionCast BiosTrailer and Optional Spanish SubtitlesSystem Requirements:Running Time 85 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: ACTION/ADVENTURE/THRILLERS UPC: 039414520620 Manufacturer No: MTI2062DVD Product Description

Good, but not as good as I was hoping...

So this is an indie film about the idea that there is a water contaminant that hits the L.A. water supply. Interesting idea. Then I heard that the band Dredg did the soundtrack and I was even more interested...

...overall, the movie looks good, the story is good, and the acting is good, but overall, the way the story flows and pieces together was not that well executed. There is a scene with two of the main characters who are like best friends, but then when they cut back to them later the two are fighting and we were all like, "What the heck was that?" I think we missed something...

It is kind of funny to watch the actor that was "Uncle Rico" in Napoleon Dynamite try to act like an military leader. I just could not buy it, but that is me. Haha.

So overall, it was a decent film, but the overall execution of it was not as well done as I was hoping for. July 2, 2008

I was just getting something to drink..........

"Waterborne" is one of those films that start a bit slow, but meshes together rather well right up to the end. Chris Masterson does a fine job, though I half expected Jane Kaczmarek to appear, admonishing her son! Shabana Azmi (City Of Joy) and Ajay Naidu do well as mother and son, trying to make a living, as Asian "foreigners" in L.A. Mageina Tovah (Spiderman) plays the girlfriend, an outsider that has fallen in love with the son.

What happens when major water supplies become contaminated, and only bottled water can be trusted? What would you do, to secure this precious commodity for yourself, and your family? Not only that, but how would it be, if a "foreigner" told you that the price went up, or you could only buy so much, and no more? How does a populace face this crisis?

"Waterborne" gives us a possible scenario as to what might happen, were that situation to arise. It's not pretty. It's a bit odd that thirst wasn't a big part of this film. Hatred was. Hatred of authority, hatred of other Races, hatred of a system that when the going gets tough, doesn't address the most simple of needs. Look also, to the location. Los Angeles was a desert before some greedy developer (or developers) decided to drop a few buildings and houses, and call it good. This all adds up to the situation you see in "Waterborne".

The events you will see in "Waterborne" are plausible, if not probable, if this scenario were to become fact. In the post-911 world, panic and fear are the only commodities to be counted on. Sounds pretty bleak, eh? In this film, a lesson IS learned however, about being a member of the human race. An uplifting finale is the reward.

In all, a very fine film. Highly recommended. April 9, 2008

A terrific independent movie that makes you think...

I caught this movie back in 2005 when it was shown at the SXSW festival and even after all these years, it still stands out firmly in my mind. There aren't too many movies that do that for me. The writing is incredible, the acting is never dull and the soundtrack is just haunting. I am glad that this movie finally found its way onto DVD so that more people can experience it. March 31, 2008

Thirsting For More--After A Great Setup, "Waterborne" Fails To Excite Or Enlighten

"Waterborne" starts out with a terrific premise, but a limited budget, and tries mightily to put on a big show! And while I might respect the effort--unfortunately, this ambitious indie falls a bit short of the mark. Set in Los Angeles, "Waterborne" recounts the story of a society in panic. The water supply has been tampered with and the city's death toll starts to rise as citizens are poisoned by this daily necessity. Concentrating on a few major characters whose lives intersect at various points, "Waterborne" has aspirations of being an "important" and "meaningful" picture about humanity when it, perhaps, would have achieved greater success as a thriller. Its script relies too heavily on contrivance and implausibilities to take it seriously as a message movie.

Ultimately, what is lacking from "Waterborne" is a logical sense of reality. If this event were to actually happen in Los Angeles, one could imagine the terror and hysteria it would inspire. The screenplay, however, misses a lot that would have enhanced the film's believability. We're told early on that people have been advised to stay away from all water--including things like showering, car washes, etc... Think about this burden. Don't you think people would be fleeing from the city? Immediately, the focus seems to rest mainly on drinking water. In the middle of this crisis, peripheral characters are still showing up to menial jobs (perfectly groomed), families are still serving up big home cooked meals (no water needed in this kitchen), and life moves on rather normally. In fact, by the third day when you would imagine all stores having been emptied, a character dying of thirst still finds plenty of milk in a convenience store. Hey, no one thought to buy up other drinkable fluids?

I might have been inclined to forgive these things had "Waterborne" succeeded as a thriller. The movie made me recall another strange indie from 1996 called "The Trigger Effect." Granted, "Trigger" had more expensive production values and a higher profile cast--but the themes were eerily similar. "Trigger" documents an unexplained power failure that starts as an inconvenience but quickly spirals into a pit of fear, violence, and desperation. "Trigger" wasn't necessarily a great movie, but it did achieve a real sense of danger and panic. People pushed to extremes ended up in extreme circumstances. It contained a frenzy and a heightened drama that let it succeed as a nifty thriller even with its other shortcomings. I wished for some of this excitement with "Waterborne" whose scenario plays out exactly as you might expect.

"Waterborne" has some decent performances, but is not compelling or unique enough. Given the horrifying premise, this movie could have been a small gem--tapping into real fears and anguish. But if the film's characters aren't smart enough to drink milk when they're thirsty--you know the situation isn't all that terrible. I wanted to like it, I just didn't. KGHarris, 12/07. December 4, 2007

One of the Worst Ever

If you enjoy a thought-provoking disaster DVD with lots of fu** and sh** words you will only be happy about the cursing. OK, OK, you might overlook the bad language if not for the mediocre acting, low budget effects, and a plot you could guess long before the end. It was so bad that I skipped the entire middle of the movie to see the last two scenes.

Sure glad that I only rented this. Now, the Poseidon, that is a good disaster flick. September 6, 2006

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