The Swimmer (1968)

Neddy Merrill has been away for most of the Summer. He reappears at a friends pool. As they talk, someone notices that there are pools spanning the entire valley. He decided to jog from ... See full summary »

Director:

Frank Perry

Writers:

John Cheever (story), Eleanor Perry

Stars:

Burt Lancaster, Janet Landgard, Janice Rule

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Burt Lancaster	...	Ned Merrill
Janet Landgard	...	Julie Ann Hooper
Janice Rule	...	Shirley Abbott
Tony Bickley	...	Donald Westerhazy
Marge Champion	...	Peggy Forsburgh
Nancy Cushman	...	Mrs. Halloran (Nudist)
Bill Fiore	...	Howie Hunsacker
David Garfield	...	Ticket Seller (as John Garfield Jr.)
Kim Hunter	...	Betty Graham
Rose Gregorio	...	Sylvia Finney
Charles Drake	...	Howard Graham
Bernie Hamilton	...	Halloran's Chauffeur
House Jameson	...	Mr. Chester Halloran (Nudist)
Jimmy Joyce	...	Jack Finney
Michael Kearney	...	Kevin Gilmartin Jr.

Storyline

Neddy Merrill has been away for most of the Summer. He reappears at a friends pool. As they talk, someone notices that there are pools spanning the entire valley. He decided to jog from pool to pool to swim the whole valley. As he stops in each pool his interactions tell his life story.

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Plot Keywords:

swimming | swimming pool | neighbor | neighborhood | connecticut | 

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Taglines:

Burt Lancaster hits the screen with a bolt of personal drama as "The Swimmer"

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 May 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Schwimmer

Filming Locations:

Connecticut, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Horizon Pictures, Dover Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sam Spiegel and Frank Perry's first choice for the lead was William Holden, who turned it down as did Paul Newman and Glenn Ford before Lancaster, who was eager to play the role, was ultimately cast.

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Goofs

At the Binswangers, when he is pushed, Ned's positioning in the close-up does not match the other shots.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Donald Westerhazy: Where have you been keeping yourself?
Ned Merrill: Oh, here and there. Here and there.

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Connections

Referenced in Undercover X (2001)

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Soundtracks

"Send for Me in Summer"
(Theme from 'The Swimmer')
by Marvin Hamlisch

User Reviews

Wonderfully Sad Portrait of Suburban Loneliness

Frank Perry's screen adaptation of the achingly sad John Cheever short story gets the tone of Cheever's story just right, even if the movie itself doesn't have quite the same impact.

There have been countless strong and powerful films made around the theme of suburban loneliness, and this movie belongs to that genre. There's something so poignant about the idea that someone can exist in a world that's manufactured for the sole purpose of providing its inhabitants with luxury, pleasure and convenience, and still be miserable. You'd think people would have gotten the point by now, and figured out that privilege, wealth and materialism have virtually nothing to do with ultimate happiness, but if our own consumerist culture is any indication, they haven't.

What helps "The Swimmer" to stand out from other similarly-themed films is the way the story is told. It's only through the reactions of others that we begin to sense what's wrong with Burt Lancaster's character. To us, he looks the picture of middle-aged robustness and health. Lancaster became a much better actor as he aged, and he gives a wonderful performance here, as his bravado and macho virility (the strutting and preening of a man on top of the world) slowly dissolves into a lost insecurity, until the film's final devastating moments leave him as forlorn as a baby.

What a sad, sad movie.

Grade: A-