| Major Cast | |
|---|---|
| Charlotte Rampling | as Sarah Morton |
| Ludivine Sagnier | as Julie |
| Charles Dance | as John Bosload, Julie's father |
| Jean-Marie Lamour | as Franck Durin |
| Marc Fayole | as Marcel |
| Mireille Mossé | as Marcel's Daughter |
| Michel Fau | as First Man |
| Jean-Claude Lecas | as Second Man |
| Emilie Gavois-Kahn | as Waitress at Cafe |
| Erarde Forestali | as Old Man |
| Lauren Farrow | as Julia |
| Sebastian Harcombe | as Terry Long |
| Frances Cuka | as Lady on the Underground |
| Keith Yeates | as Sarah's Father |
| Tricia Aileen | as John Bosload's Secretary |
| Glen Davies | as Pub Barman |
| MPAA Rating: | R |
| Distributor: | Celluloid Dreams (Worldwide) Focus Features (USA) |
| Production Companies: | Fidélité Productions France 2 Cinéma Gimages FOZ Headforce Ltd. Canal+ |
| Release Date (US): | 1 Aug. 2003 |
| Running Time: | 102 minutes |
| Languages: | English/French |
| Domestic Box Office: | $10,105,505 (10/12/2003) |
| Worldwide Box Office: | $10,372,390 (11/07/2003) |
| Production Budget: | $? |
Sarah Morton, a writer of crime novels, feels out of sorts. Her publisher John Bosload suggests she take a rest and offers her the use of his house in the south of France. She accepts, and at first she finds peace in the secluded villa.
But then Bosload's daughter Julie shows up.1 She is a free-loving young woman who hooks up with a different man every night. The loud lovemaking annoys Sarah, and they reach an uneasy truce. But as days go by they grow closer, eventually becoming fond of each other. Then there is a murder, with unusual results.
Swimming Pool is a tissue of tangled family relationships, not all of which are as they were originally presented, as reveled by characters becoming suddenly uncomfortable or evasive. Sarah gradually unravels them, discovering that John is not what he seems.
There is a lot of nudity in the film, of Julie predominantly, and Ludivine Sagnier portrays her with admirable frankness.2 Charlotte Rampling appears nude in one scene toward the end of the film. All in all this is a well-acted and beautifully photographed film, with entertaining plot twists. But I would call it only mediocre as mysteries go.
There are quite a few deleted scenes on the disk. Most are of Sarah exploring the house and grounds, eating or shopping in the village, or visiting the castle of the Marquis de Sade. But the last two concern Sarah and John, and in my opinion they should have been left in the movie.
My Rating:
7 out of 10
Capsule review: This film is well acted and beautifully photographed, but in my opinion it is only mediocre as a murder mystery.
| IMDB Rating: 6.8 | Raters: 37,622 |
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