Swingers, the Estonian-language remake of a Latvian hit by director Andrejs Ekis, is less a film and more an unapologetic, hyperactive explosion of libido, awkward silences, and painfully honest laughs. Think 1970s German sex comedy-minus lederhosen, plus Baltic deadpan and a generous helping of bare butts.
Ekis, a self-proclaimed outsider to Latvia's art-house scene, knows exactly what he's doing: he's after belly laughs, cringes, and gasps. And thanks to a cast of seasoned Estonian actors, he mostly succeeds. Elina Reinold is a standout, radiating comic intensity in every swivelling motion, while Jan Uuspõld's zombie-obsessed husband delivers the kind of dry, exhausted performance that somehow steals the scene-especially when his pants are metaphorically (and literally) down.
The plot centres on two couples tangled in the absurdities of lust, marriage, and midlife miscommunication. One phone call to a swingers hotline sends the evening spiralling into farce, and yes, it's as messy and ridiculous as it sounds. It's not elegant, but it's alive.
One may scoff at the cliché-ridden script, but Swingers doesn't pretend to be original. It's proud to be vulgar. Proud to re-use the exact Latvian script. Proud to take the piss out of sex, shame, and Estonian reserve.
Ultimately, it's the actors who elevate this raunchy romp into something more.
Through their commitment, Ekis transforms reheated material into something fresh, funny, and disarmingly real. You may walk out slightly embarrassed, but definitely entertained-and maybe just a little less uptight.
