Fishing for a Few Compliments

The Scene: The summer’s most eagerly awaited premiere--Universal’s “Waterworld” at Mann’s Chinese Theater on Wednesday. Of the epic that’s earned the Cecil B. DeMille-worthy epithet “The Most Expensive Movie Ever Made,” star Kevin Costner said: “It’s done and we’ve done our best.”

The Locale: A nearby parking lot was transformed to evoke the film’s floating “atolls”--rusty sheet-metal walls, hanging nets, fountains, Jet Skis, oil drums and a fully rigged catamaran as the centerpiece. “It reminds me of Las Vegas,” one guest said. “It’s like a grunge Treasure Island.”

Who Was There: Costner, co-stars Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tina Majorino and Dennis Hopper (who said his character “is really, really, really bad. Bad news. Bad news. But great on the water.”); producers John Davis and Chuck Gordon. Among the 2,000 guests were Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver, Patrick Swayze, Brad Pitt, Courteney Cox, Sally Field, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mike and Judy Ovitz, Barbara Davis, Sid and Lorraine Sheinberg, David and Jackie Foster, and studio execs Ron Meyer, Hal Lieberman and Casey Silver.

Audience Review: Did anyone not have a strong opinion? They ranged from “serviceable” to “a fabulous spectacle.” The most common remark was: “It’s better than I expected it to be.” Said one writer, “It’s OK. They just paid too much for it. And since when is that a crime in America?”

Chow: It looked like most of Sea World had been grilled. Ambrosia’s buffets included soft shell crab, sea bass, scallop ceviche, tuna and rock shrimp.

Quoted: “This represents all the things I like about movies,” Costner said. “It’s real, it’s original, it’s about something the audience has never seen before. And that’s enough when it comes to a movie.”

Overheard: “I like that Costner’s character hates women and kids,” an actress said. “He’s sort of a good-looking W.C. Fields.”

Hollywood Wisdom: Said an industry savant as he schmoozed at the party: “Now is not the time for honesty.”