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The Lifeguard

Play trailer Poster for The Lifeguard R Released Aug 30, 2013 1h 38m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
16% Tomatometer 32 Reviews 27% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
A reporter (Kristen Bell) quits her job, returns to her old lifeguard duties, and has an affair with a teenager.

Critics Reviews

View All (32) Critics Reviews
Sheila O'Malley RogerEbert.com "The Lifeguard" is hemmed in by vagueness and cliche, and nearly ruined by its soundtrack, an insistent barrage of thematically obvious alt-radio music cues. Rated: 2/4 Sep 2, 2013 Full Review Gary Goldstein Los Angeles Times Although writer-director Liz W. Garcia's wistful, angsty tale treads familiar ground, the filmmaker has crafted a credibly flawed and conflicted heroine who holds interest. Rated: 3/5 Aug 30, 2013 Full Review Kyle Smith New York Post The central character simply comes across as whiny and entitled instead of troubled and dark, and the central theme of getting your groove back by acting like a kid again has been done many times by much more talented filmmakers. Rated: 1/4 Aug 30, 2013 Full Review JD Duran InSession Film The third act does get better and leaves some room for you to get on board with what’s happening. Once it comes full circle, there’s a little relief but not enough to repair the damage already done. Rated: D+ Aug 15, 2024 Full Review Nicholas Bell IONCINEMA.com Though featuring a handful of winning performances from an extremely likeable cast, writer/director Liz W. Garcia's debut, The Lifeguard, is about as original and realistic as its metaphorical title is gauntly vague. Aug 22, 2019 Full Review Morgan Rojas Cinemacy The Lifeguard is not groundbreaking cinema or a heavy-handed story, but it succeeds in showcasing great performances from its actors. Mar 1, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (200) audience reviews
Nick W Well written sympathetic charecter study, even if the lead is just a doofus making very poor lifechoices. Brilliant performence by Bell and also the supporting cast. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/06/24 Full Review Patrick M Always love Kristin Bell. This movie was pretty slow. A little bit disappointed. I would have liked a different ending. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/22/24 Full Review Clive A This movie is definitely imperfect. Flaws in some material, flaws in some music choices etc. BUT it is frankly a really good effort from the stars and director. Bell can play any role, but if the direction and story was a bit less "heavy handed" this would look more like Garden State. It tries to "tell you how to feel" instead of letting you feel at times, and the best friend's storyline seems almost like an afterthought. That being said. It's not a bad movie by any means. I (personally) am excited to see what Liz does next. She definitely has that indie, Zack Braff vibe and with a bit of fine tuning, I think she'll kill it. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/06/23 Full Review Audience Member ) Isn't it a crime for a 30 year old to be with a 16 year old? This film romanticized the idea. Really not a good idea to plant this seed into anyone's head. Really, really not a good idea. Otherwise, I thought the acting was good. I was truly appalled, though, that they took it to the statutory r*pe level. Not cool. At. All. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Audience Member Does anyone know why Jay decided to cancel the postcard he wrote to Leigh in the end of the movie? Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Audience Member Like its characters, the movie struggles to figure out who it is & what it wants, but makes a strong third act comeback. Thoughtful & well-photographed, it gets weighed down by an obnoxiously pretentious indie rock soundtrack. #nitrosMovieChallenge Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/08/22 Full Review Read all reviews
The Lifeguard

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Movie Info

Synopsis A reporter (Kristen Bell) quits her job, returns to her old lifeguard duties, and has an affair with a teenager.
Director
Liz W. Garcia
Producer
Milan Chakraborty, Liz W. Garcia, Joshua Harto, Ryan Alan Dearth
Screenwriter
Liz W. Garcia
Distributor
Focus World, Screen Media Ventures
Production Co
C Plus Pictures, Attic Light Films, La Pistola
Rating
R (Brief Graphic Nudity|A Disturbing Image|Strong Sexuality|Drug Use|Language|Some Involving Teens)
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 30, 2013, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
May 23, 2016
Runtime
1h 38m