
The Swimmer
1968, Drama, 1h 34m
23 Reviews 2,500+ RatingsYou might also like
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Movie Info
Cast & Crew
Ned Merrill
Julie Ann Hooper
Shirley Abbott
Donald Westerhazy
Peggy Forsburgh
Howie Hunsacker
Critic Reviews for The Swimmer
All Critics (23) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (23)
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As effectively as almost any movie ever made about American suburbia, The Swimmer gets the contentment that comes with material success[...] And it gets how the fantasy is hard to sustain.
April 1, 2014 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review… -
A resounding commercial flop, this has since been recognized as a signature 60s film, prescient in its view of American self-deception.
October 30, 2007 | Full Review… -
A largely loony but oddly compulsive allegory.
June 24, 2006 | Full Review… -
As do few movies, The Swimmer stays in the memory like an echo that never quite disappears.
May 9, 2005 | Rating: 3.5/5 | Full Review… -
Burt Lancaster is superb in his finest performance.
October 23, 2004 | Rating: 4/4 | Full Review… -
An enigmatic, poetic, disturbing, interestingly pretentious fable.
June 1, 2003 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…
Audience Reviews for The Swimmer
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Nov 30, 2015A buff Burt Lancaster is nearly naked the whole film as a upscale businessman swimming through the pools of his neighbors in a circuitous route home one evening. I wouldn't watch this for years as I took it merely as a Lancaster vanity project, but now I guess I'm old enough to see that that actually plays an important part in the story, his vanity, undercutting what is seen versus what is real. There's a Twilight Zone twist telegraphed throughout, but nonetheless its a cool piece about the difference between who we think we are and who we are in fact.Kevin M. W Super Reviewer
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May 06, 2014Observing that all his neighbors have swimming pools, an indefatigably cheerful man out for a morning jog decides to "swim" his way home; at each stop he talks to a new neighbor, slowly painting a picture of his life. Based on a John Cheever short story, this odd concept works surprisingly well as both a suburban satire and (thanks to an excellent performance by Burt Lancaster) a touching character study of a man who doesn't realize the American dream has passed him by.Greg S Super Reviewer
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Nov 15, 2013The Swimmer is an extraordinary bit of a cinema that for some reason does not get a lot of airplay. Lancaster is at his best as a person who has conveniently forgotten about his recent past and interacts with those who love and hate him as he swims through suburban pools on his way home. Gripping.John B Super Reviewer
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May 13, 2009an offbeat, even absurd suburban drama that sees burt lancaster fighting to preserve his illusions while swimming home through his neighbor's pools. burt is the force that holds this film together. a little dated but also well ahead of it's timeStella D Super Reviewer
The Swimmer Quotes
Ned: | Ned (toasting to Julie): Here's to the sugar on the strawberries. |
Ned: | Here's to the sugar on the strawberries. |
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