Swimming Pool

Name: Swimming Pool
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Crime
Released: July 2, 2003
Duration: 102 min
Rating: 70
Cast: Charles Dance, Charlotte Rampling, Ludivine Sagnier

2003

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Ratings

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6.3

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6.3	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Ratings

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Swimming Pool

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Movie Details & Credits

Focus Features | Release Date: July 2, 2003 | R

Starring: Charles Dance, Charlotte Rampling, Ludivine Sagnier

Summary: Europe's most daring and inventive writer/director, François Ozon, reunites with his two favorite leading ladies, Charlotte Rampling (of "Under the Sand") and Ludivine Sagnier (of "8 Women") in this deliciously sophisticated and sexy mystery. (Focus Features)

Director: François Ozon

Genre(s): Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Crime

Rating: R

Runtime: 102 min

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Critic Reviews

Dallas Observer Jean Oppenheimer

A delicious little thriller about an uptight, ill-humored English mystery writer who becomes enmeshed in murder, Swimming Pool is at once comical, contrary, resourceful and ambiguous. Read full review

Paula Nechak

Occasionally falters in its symbolism and storytelling, but still unnerves because we're never quite sure of our bearings, or whose "reality" we're watching. Read full review

Keith Phipps

Swimming Pool returns Ozon to the psychological complexities of "Under The Sand" and his early mini-feature "See The Sea," and he again proves himself a master of building shocking moments from a series of seemingly insignificant gestures and throwaway lines. Read full review

Peter Travers

It's Sagnier, a young Bardot, who lifts the movie, and Rampling, 58, who gives it nuance, not to mention a nude scene that shows off a body Demi Moore would envy. These two make it seductive fun to be fooled. Read full review

Mike Clark

With a little sex, some mystery, a little sex, an appealing title and a little sex, France's Swimming Pool has what it takes to become an art house audience magnet, especially amid the heat of summer. Read full review

Jonathan Rosenbaum

Unfortunately, after the well-honed psychological melodrama of its first half, this wanders off into the metaphysical territory of Ingmar Bergman's "Persona" (a much better film). Read full review

Michael Sragow

A hollow excuse for an erotic mystery. Read full review

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User Reviews

hamidgoodarzi

Jan 12, 2023

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. In one of the reviews written for this movie, I read this sentence: On the surface, everything is calm. This sentence seems to be a good description of the film and the overall cinematic atmosphere of Francois Ozon. He is one of the filmmakers of the new wave of French cinema and for me he is the most admirable of them. Ozon has made many long and short films and the filmmaker has a cinematic style and personality. One of the most important features of his cinema is the combination of the real world and the virtual world. In the movie "Swimming Pool", he was able to depict it beautifully and easily with the design of the space, cinematography and excellent decoupage, and at the same time, he was able to capture it and surprise the audience. The tone of his film)swimming pool) is such that it enters aspects of human life that are forbidden and taboo. The physical aspects and bodily and complexity of relationships have always been important in his films, and it is the same in swimming pools.
Swimming pool is a different and unconventional film that is very simple and very complex. The film is considered very strong in its cinematic structure. Framing is thought and calculated. I enjoyed watching this movie as much as Ozone's other works.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

danielb1982

Feb 24, 2015

I very rarely write a bad review, but felt I needed to for this.

I actually forced myself to sit through this, I really wish I hadn't. Apart from the daughter (who is beautiful).. everything else about this film was awful, up there with the worst films I've ever watched, and I've watchedI very rarely write a bad review, but felt I needed to for this.

I actually forced myself to sit through this, I really wish I hadn't. Apart from the daughter (who is beautiful).. everything else about this film was awful, up there with the worst films I've ever watched, and I've watched some stinkers trust me!!

Perhaps I didn't "get it" but I wasted 102 minutes of my life watching this, a film of which I add, I had high hopes for.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

M7AMD

Jun 25, 2023

first of all how is this movie has above average rating!.
the story is just plain and not interesting the characters are dull, i felt like im watching a teenage film from Netflix, i was patient and hoped the movie would get better at the end but i couldn't wait i was getting bored of thisfirst of all how is this movie has above average rating!.
the story is just plain and not interesting the characters are dull, i felt like im watching a teenage film from Netflix, i was patient and hoped the movie would get better at the end but i couldn't wait i was getting bored of this mainly fillers and skipped forward and i am very thankful i did because the ending was really dumb.

i regret i wasted my time watching this terrible movie, so my final score is 1/10 strongly not recommended, one of the worst movies I've watched this year.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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92	#92 Best Movie of 2003
91	#91 Most Shared Movie of 2003