Swimming

Movies churned out by Hollywood that pretend to explore the inner lives of characters often have them talking ad nauseam about their `feelings,' with a perspective on themselves that a good therapist rarely has. In Swimming, director Robert Siegel allows us to discover and experience the character and the film, rather than shoving it all down our throats.

With honesty and subtlety, Swimming captures a pivotal time in everybody's lives when we're caught between youth and adulthood. It's told from the point of view of a young woman, played to perfection by the amazing Lauren Ambrose, who, after her work in this film, is movie star material.

Swimming also eschews the usual cheesy sappiness and manages to be genuinely sweet, charming, and truly uplifting, not to mention funny. It's also great to see an indie film which is smart and sophisticated, without feeling it has to be `hip.'

If you're looking for a bubble gum teen film, then stay away from Swimming; but if you want to see a movie that respects your intelligence and will have you feeling better about life, this movie is for you.

Great production, strong script, beautiful cinematography, graceful direction, and every performance is terrific.

ANYONE that has ever been to Myrtle Beach, SC can relate to this movie more than the average viewer. There is something in the air almost that generates youth and nostalgia through you while visiting and when you leave you are never quite the same. In the opening reel you see young teenagers cruising the boulevard and haunting by-passers on the beach that make one realize in a single instant while there (a place where we all connect) just how many people we pass by never getting to know.

This film touches greatly on rich characters... Franky the main character is deep and forlorn. We are directly put into someones shoes through her of how it must be to actually "live" in a place we all wish we could stay. Instead of being the "vacationers" as in most movies we get to see a residents point of view. An exceptional character is also the girl who seemingly befriends Franky, coming in to town shaking her up and confusing her just when she thought she wanted a little bit of change. This girl is a true character she symbolizes most people and how they are clueless to most depth of life.. she can be described as those shallow "fly-by-night" people that we have all encountered that you wish and think might stay but in the end they never do. Franky's romantic involvement with new-age hippi Heath is right-on target and pulls the story to its closure.

The main point of the story is very much what I described near the beginning. In the movie Franky never swims, even being asked 5 or 6 times. Near the end she simply states that it would be weird if she leaves because she will not have the ocean to swim in, as it has always been in her own backyard. This is the eye-opening truth in all of our lives... we take for granted what others see. And just like her old friendship with Nicola that seemed tired when the new girl arrived... Franky got a taste of not dealing with Nicola but soon realized that you can't easily say goodbye to something you will always remember.

This movie is highly under-rated (as are alot of non-blockbusters these days). It is great to see a movie filmed in the South at one of the best and most popular beaches in the world. "Shag" (Another great movie) was also filmed in Myrtle Beach, however it is taken from the "visitors" point of view and we don't get to see and feel what it is like to be trapped in somewhere so wonderful and still want out.

It's a rare film that touches on coming of age and the important lessons about learning whom to trust with such restraint and respect for the characters. Lauren Ambrose is eloquent even when she's silent. I'll use it in my work with girls and young women

I just recently caught Swimming at a preview screening, dragged by my girlfriend and what a surprise! This thoughtful, understated film quietly brings you into the lives of its characters with the honesty and sincerity of true acceptance. Lauren Ambrose is simply amazing as Frankie,a Myrtle Beach townie, whose life goes through some real turns during one summer. What's so good about the film is that it's like real life. None of the ususual movie Dramatics. Yet in the end, you can totally feel the experience of Frankie's change and that's what makes Swimming so satisfying in this day of special effects laiden Hollywood spectacles. Gentle, charming and really moving Swimming is a subtle gem.

I loved the way this movie delved into relationships between people. Compared to some coming-of-age movies, where characters seem to fall in and out of love at the drop of a hat, I thought this movie did a great job of helping you reflect on what qualities attract us to other people. Also, I found the sometimes quirky characters appealing and realistic. Overall, it was an engaging story of an adolescent's girls search for identity.