Factual error: The Mariner's tiny gill-slits behind each ear could barely oxygenate a one-foot-long fish, never mind a full-grown human being. To accommodate his 6-foot body, the Mariner would need multiple 8-inch gills stacked on either side of his neck, at least. Compounding this error, the Mariner then draws Helen to safety underwater, telling her, "I'll breathe for both of us!" So, now his grossly undersized gills are oxygenating two full-grown human beings.
Waterworld (1995)
1 mistake since 17 Feb '17, 00:00
Directed by: Kevin Reynolds
Starring: Kevin Costner, Dennis Hopper, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tina Majorino
Helen: You've been there, haven't you? Dryland? You know where it is.
Mariner: Yeah, I know where it is.
Helen: And uh, and we're going?
Mariner: You and I are. The kid we gotta pitch over the side.
Helen: What?
Mariner: My boat's tore up. I'm taking on water. [Points to filtration system.] I'd be lucky to get half a hydro ration out of that.
Helen: You know, I said I won't drink.
Mariner: For twelve days? [Helen nods.] No. It's better that one of you dies now, than both of you die slow.
Helen: Wait. Wait. We saved your life. We got you out.
Mariner: No. You got me out so you could get out. We're even.
Trivia: The most remembered line from "Waterworld," "Dryland is not a myth; I have seen it," is never spoken in the actual movie.
Question: Why did they burn the Mariners boat? Wouldn't it have made more sense to capture it and use it for themselves? They know they are gonna run out of "Go Juice" at some point so why not use the fastest sail boat to find dry land?
Answer: If they'd have captured it and took it for themselves then they wouldn't have been able to follow them either. They could have used the Trimaran to find dry land a lot faster than using the tanker. Once they'd found dry land, simply go back to the tanker and tell them where it is so the tanker can make its way there too.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Answer: Most likely to make sure that the Mariner and Helen couldn't follow them and rescue Enola. They were trying to find Dryland and if Enola was taken from them, they'd never be able to find it. Also the smokers ship was filled with people and using the Mariner's boat and constantly going back and forth from Dryland to the ship would have taken too long. Better to use the ship they're all on and get them there quicker. Also, none of the Smokers could read the map that was on Enola's back.