Swimming Pool (Unrated Version)

Rating:
Summary: Most mis-marketed movie in years
Review: We watched the trailer after the movie, and were just stunned at how grossly misrepresented this movie was. No wonder so many people hate it. It was sold as some kind of thriller, which it isn't. I found its "secrets" fairly obvious, but that isn't my real complaint.

Here is my problem (spoiler ahead):

So the whole thing is basically just the story the author was writing, and it is in some way a sort of warped revenge against the inattentive publisher she has a crush on (vaguely a take on James' "Turn of the Screw", but surely I'm giving it more credit than it deserves).

OK, Here is my question: Is this drab, half-baked tale the BEST that the author character in the film could dream up? Two girls hiding a body? No wonder the publisher in the film reads it at the end and thinks it's a piece of crap...she's GOTTA be able to dream up something more interesting than "Under The Tuscan Sun" meets "Diabolique."

Rating:
Summary: Another Possibility
Review: Great film!!! Another possible interpretation: ***SPOILER*** Ozon has a website and there are discussions about Julie representing a character in Sarah's mind. I initially interpreted a much simpler meaning...Julie was just a girl living at the country house, not really the publisher's daughter, whom Sarah thought it was all along. She was tricked, and for the better. Much simpler than the whole psychological alter ego and symbolic representations. Anything is possible.

Rating:
Summary: A worthwhile watch
Review: Good story, for the most part good acting and sex that's neither contrived or gratuitous.

Rating:
Summary: "It's just a big bathtub"
Review: During its first half, this is a typical French movie: slow-paced, with plenty of time for the viewer to reflect on what is happening with the characters and try to understand their thought process and motivations. Those of you that do not enjoy this type of cinema will have a bit of trouble keeping up with the story. The good news is that there comes a point in which the pace and the suspense level pick up considerably, creating a good balance overall.

Sarah Morton (Charlotte Rampling) is a writer of detective stories that is having trouble finding inspiration for her next novel. In an effort to start her off on the right track again, her publisher loans her a house in the French countryside, in the hope that the peace and seclusion will help her break her writer's block. The house is a beautiful place and has a large swimming pool, a feature that presents no attractiveness whatsoever to Sarah.

One day, not long after Sarah establishes herself in the house, the publisher's daughter, Julie (Ludivine Sagnier), shows up at the house and decides to stay there for a while. This breaks Sarah's peace and serenity and the two women start off to a very rocky start. The personalities are clearly opposite, Julie is extroverted, likes to have fun and swim in the pool, while Sarah is very rigid and hates being around the pool. However, a little time helps them to start to know each other and accept the other person as she is, and even adopt a couple of each other's traits. Sarah even starts writing a story using Julie as a protagonist.

However, after a short time of "truce", the peace is broken by a series of unsettling events that plunge the plot in overdrive and lead to an ending that will leave you will your mouth open and trying to understand what really happened.

Overall, this is a very good movie with high level performances by the two main actresses, especially Sagnier. I would recommend it to those of you who think that you can endure the first half or so, which as I mentioned, consists of rather slow paced developments.