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The Big, Bad Swim

Play trailer Poster for The Big, Bad Swim 2006 1h 36m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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Tomatometer 3 Reviews 75% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
A group of Connecticut residents with aquaphobia attend an adult education swim class, hoping to conquer their fears. Among the students are Amy (Paget Brewster), a calculus teacher in a failing marriage, and Jordan (Jess Weixler), a blackjack dealer and stripper whose younger brother, David (Avi Setton), constantly follows her with a video camera. Depressed instructor Noah (Jeff Branson) manages to bring hope to the students as they learn to swim, while a romance develops between him and Amy.
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The Big, Bad Swim

Critics Reviews

View All (3) Critics Reviews
Nell Minow Movie Mom Rated: B+ Feb 18, 2012 Full Review Christopher Campbell Cinematical Regardless of all the times I've desired more fresh ideas in a movie, The Big Bad Swim reminded me that sometimes characters don't require novelty as long as they feel genuine. Rated: 3/5 Sep 18, 2007 Full Review Christopher Null Filmcritic.com there's a little too much time paddling around in the pool when we ought to be getting to know our quiet heroes. Rated: 3/5 Jul 3, 2007 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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don s Adults taking a beginner's swimming class. That is the nugget of an idea that was made into this movie. We have the swim instructor, who has been seeing a shrink and taking lots of meds, a teacher who is going through a divorce, a card dealer who sidelines as a stripper, and a bunch of older folks afraid of the water who really have nothing to do with the story. The characterizations are a bit to pat and tame for me: the stripper is going to act indignant when offered a "normal" job, the soon to be divorced is going to hop into bed with the first guy that pays her attention, etc. Nothing new here. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Pretty low budget, pretty damn decent flick. Never know what you will get with an indie flick. This one impresses. Great cast of characters created by relatively small names, and a nice, believable, well-delivered story about people just trying to be happy, more or less. Really liked the cast as a whole and a few scenes. Amy is an attractive teacher with a douchey husband. Her first scene at the casino at the blackjack table was pretty great. Great writing there. Noah is a good-looking ex-diver teaching swim classes to adults. Pretty good character. Not sure about the acting...he doesn't do much. But Branson is very good as very flat, and the character has some great qualities that help the movie. Jordan could have been a silly, pathetic character given her occupation, but she stands up well in the movie. Another great scene, in my opinion, is when she waits outside for Noah. Again, a well-scripted conversation highlighting the awkwardness of becoming attracted to someone and trying to gauge their interest/show them you are interested. Damn well done. In the end, maybe a little flat. Most positives on imdb, and the fig leaves mean the film was well-represented at some of the film festivals. If there is a complaint, it's along the lines of what was the point of what I just watched? But that is kind of the brilliance of it. There is no great plot or twist or anything. It's just good characters and the writing makes it interesting enough to stay invested for 90 minutes. A certain scene at the end proved my investment. I really wanted that one thing to happen! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Audience Member The Big Bad Swim makes a quiet, pleasing splash Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Audience Member well a movie that I don't recall much of, but it was ok Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member Compelling and thoughtful. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review Audience Member The concept is interesting but there isn't enough conflict to sustain the entire running time. There are also a few narrative ideas that don't work as well as they should such as the teens filming a doc about their sister. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Big, Bad Swim

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis A group of Connecticut residents with aquaphobia attend an adult education swim class, hoping to conquer their fears. Among the students are Amy (Paget Brewster), a calculus teacher in a failing marriage, and Jordan (Jess Weixler), a blackjack dealer and stripper whose younger brother, David (Avi Setton), constantly follows her with a video camera. Depressed instructor Noah (Jeff Branson) manages to bring hope to the students as they learn to swim, while a romance develops between him and Amy.
Director
Ishai Setton
Producer
Ishai Setton, Chandra Simon
Screenwriter
Daniel Schechter
Production Co
Visit Films, Four Act Films, Setton Sun Productions, Renart Films
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 21, 2019
Runtime
1h 36m
Sound Mix
Dolby
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