Critic Reviews

Although The Postman conveys a thoroughly imagined vision of a future society, its basic concerns are actually far from those of traditional sci-fi, as it quickly comes to feel more like a Western than anything else.

If you take The Postman at face value - that it's a straightforward, post- apocalyptic adventure tale, then it could seem like one of the worst movies of the year, if not of all time.

It's tempting to accuse director and star Kevin Costner of taking the idea of vanity production to a new level in this frontier adventure based on a book by David Brin.

Costner's ponderous post-apocalyptic morality tale feels every minute of its nearly three hours.

Regrettably, The Postman is just one more reminder of what a nonfactor sincerity often is in terms of artistic merit.

The Postman isn't as atrocious as the inane trailers and media hype have indicated, but like "Waterworld" a lot of the prerelease scrutiny is well warranted.

There are those who will no doubt call The Postman the worst film of the year, but it's too good-hearted for that.

But since Costner canít save his movie, it's something of a stretch to think he might be able to save the world.

Goofy and gee-whiz when it isn't being post-apocalyptic glum, it is such an earnest hodgepodge that only by imagining "Mad Max" directed by Frank Capra can you get even an inkling of what it's like.

The dragging pace is one of several agonizing defects in this bloated sci-fi action drama.