Swimming Pool (DVD)

...dips in the (nicely photographed) swimming pool, sunbathing at poolside or tangling in bed (or other less cozy loci) with one of a string of mostly anonymous males, none of whom could be said to suffer from the condition of being too attractive. Mr Ozon plays up the contrast between the two women, highlighting Julie's provocative actions against Sarah's frustrated avoidance. Julie is garrulous and sexually uninhibited where Sarah is circumspect ...
...the day. Thus we have a cardboard classic conflict that exhibits no genuine tension, never comes to a head, nor figures in what happens next. A grave and unforeseen turn in the plot causes Sarah and Julie to switch places, so to speak, with Sarah now taking charge of the situation and Julie becoming subdued. The momentum never grows to a proper pitch, and what little there is is quickly extinguished by a non-sequiturial detour that offers, for whatever ...

zerbine28 20.01.2006 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Swimming Pool (DVD)

...and there's plenty of nude swimming and sunbathing. And that's not all she gets up to - she comes across as sexually precocious, to put it one way - all of which gets the possibly repressed and prudish Sarah (Rampling) very uppity. But maybe it's all just jealousy on her part. To sum up, the arrival of Julie represents an end to the peace and quiet that Sarah was hoping to get - It's mostly about the relationship between the two women, but various ...
...tavern in the village features quite a lot, both because Sarah fancies him, and because she likes her food. There's no holding back with the profiteroles in this little vacation! << Is it any good? >> It's not bad. The actors are very good, and it looks good - scenes of rural France, female sunbathing bodies… it's bound to look good, isn't it? A lot of the reason for this movie's success is the fact that it relies just as much on things which ...

BuzzinMovies 10.05.2005 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Swimming Pool (DVD)

...so that surface of the swimming pool and film stayed untouched. That’s why no other title for this movie is more appropriate than this. I guess that "Swimming pool is kind of film that is hard to run out at the movies. But maybe some other film festivals but Cannes, can bring you the chance to see it. If you however travel, by some chance to France, I’m sure that you can find the way to get hold of this brilliant film. ...

barefoot777 03.03.2004 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Swimming Pool (DVD)

A bilingual project that doesn't quite live up to the expectation I must have put upon it. I mean, it has a strong cast (both English and French), some great locations and cinematography but just nothing that really captivates you. If it's trying to be subtle it's too subtle, if it's trying to shock or provoke then it completely fails to do so. Francois Ozon is a great director and his infatuation with English reserve and it's scope for hidden passions ...
...especially by making this French film very accessible to an English audience, but I just can't see it going beyond the arthouse crowd who I'd imagine would be suitably unimpressed. The only thing that kept me watching was Charlotte Rampling's brilliant performance as the central character, Sarah Morton. Perhaps Ozon's French fans will find some fascination through this of us English but I can't reciprocate that upon him. ...

fortynights 05.01.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of Swimming Pool (DVD)