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29 out of 32 people found the following review useful:
Recommended, 31 January 2003

Author: Simon Booth from UK

It's a Japanese comedy about a group of male synchronised swimmers - how cool is that!?

Well, "not very", you'd be forgiven for thinking... certainly I wouldn't have been interested, if not for consistently positive low level press amongst the internet community. Thankfully, the warm response is quite justified - Waterboys takes its seemingly mundane premise (perhaps more resonant in patriarchal Japan) and turns it into a delightful little comedy.

Suzuki is the only member of the swimming team at Tadano Boy's High School... until the new swimming teacher arrives and she is an extremely "hot babe". Suddenly everybody wants to be on the swim team... until they discover that what she teaches is Synchronised Swimming. Apparently, this is considered an extremely non-manly thing to do in Japan. Only five pupils decide to stick with it anyway, for personal reasons that you will discover through the course of the movie. Everyone laughs at them, ridicules them and above all doubts them... so naturally the impetus to succeed is strong.

Waterboys is a genre movie at heart, taking the standard sports movie misfits and putting them through trials and tests to see what heights they can rise to under pressure. Nothing too surprising, but it's all dressed up quite charmingly here. Quirky characters genuinely engage your interest and affections, and the humour is brisk and mostly absurd. The script treads familiar ground without it ever seeming tired or cliched, finding new ways of exploring each situation. It's a funny movie, a very sweet movie and a highly enjoyable one.

Recommended.

5 out of 5 people found the following review useful:
Male synchro... I just love this movie, 24 January 2005

Author: kalendradee from South Korea

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

I love the characters in this movie. Suzuki's the only guy left on the swim team (because its really that bad). He's on the verge of deciding he's pretty worthless when a few things happen to spice up his life.

A female teacher comes to the all male school to be a swim instructor and the boys come out in drones. Haha funny part is that she didn't know it was an all boys school and she intended to start a synchronized swimming team, but that is unheard of for guys to do it - it's laughable.

So there you have Suzuki, Sato a kid with an afro who claims to have dumped the basketball team to swim, Ohta the one joining the team to get buff, Kanazawa a math nerd that feels the need to learn to swim and stay afloat because of the science in it, and Saotome the guy who has an eye on one of the swim team.

They have a few disasters before actually getting to the synchro performance, you watch the friendships build and good things finally happening for the misfits. It's a really enjoyable funny film.

6 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Take any Micky and Judy movie.. Add water and five Japanese schoolboys..., 26 November 2001

Author: Havan_IronOak from NYC/FL

Five adorable and well-meaning misfits at a Japanese high school try to organize a synchronized swimming team, but their early efforts at a routine end in disaster. They persevere, and with the help of a Dolphin Trainer from the local aquarium they eventually get it right and earn the respect of their peers.

4 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
A Nutshell Review: Waterboys, 14 May 2007

Author: DICK STEEL from Singapore

I had enjoyed Japanese writer-director Shinobu Yaguchi's Swing Girls back in 2004, in a story of how a group of schoolgirls mobilized to form a big band jazz group, trained and finally perform in competition. It had a simple story made great by the excellent cast in endearing characters, as well as awesome jazz music to go along. In my attempt to revisit some of his earlier works, it had led me back to the Waterboys.

Waterboys almost follows the same formula, where a group of misfits get together, and against all odds and everyone's pessimism, manage to pull through and put up one heck of a performance. Along the way, they encounter seemingly implausible obstacles which stand to derail their plans and hopes, and sometimes watching them come through in comedic ways just puts a smile on you. It's one of those feel good movies without any real villains to snarl at, just being there to cheer them on as they try to give one of the best performances of their mundane lives.

A youthful looking Satoshi Tsumabuki (starred in this year's Nada Sou Sou) plays Suzuki, the only member of his school's swim team, who gets more members than he bargained for when a beautiful teacher, Mrs Sakuma (Kaori Manabe) becomes the swim coach of the all- boys school. But after a comedy of errors, we're left with 5 nerdy boys who must rough it out to be synchronized swimmers instead, bringing guffaws from their schoolmates and folks in their neighbourhood.

Not wanting to give up, they enlist the reluctant help of a dolphin trainer (Naoto Takenaka, who was also in Swing Girls) at Sea World, who trains them through unorthodox methods, which brings on the laughter and allows space for the boys to exude charm during their weird routines. It's basically an underdog's story and their struggles to fulfill a promise, whether or not they look stupid or effeminate while doing it. And thrown into the mix is a budding romance between Suzuki, and Shizuko Kiuchi (Aya Hirayama), a female karate exponent from a neighbouring all-girls school.

And when they finally get their act going, you'll be left wanting more. That's how a bubblegum movie should be, in order to cover its breezy, simple plot. Thoroughly entertaining, and suitable for all ages.

The Code 3 DVD from Alliance Entertainment (as with most locally pressed DVDs) comes without any special features. Visuals are letterboxed, and the quality of transfer is decent. The audio comes in Dolby Digital Stereo, and subtitles are available in English or Chinese. Scene selection is available in 8 chapters.

4 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
A hilarious japanese-style anime-esque comedy, 12 November 2002

Author: lucasinian from Germany

"Waterboys" is a comedy, a very anime-esque one too, which doesn't mean a bad thing. In fact, I liked this movie for its funny moments and wacky plot elements.

The story is basically about five high school boys who decide to learn synchronized swimming, influenced by the new coach of their school's swimming team, Sakuma; An attractive young woman that is into synchro swimming. However, because of an unexpected incident, Sakuma has to go on vacation, leaving the team without supervision. With the Tadano High's summer festival coming very soon, every club from the school is preparing a special event on their own. Suzuki and friends eventually decide to organize a special sync swimming show, with the help of a dolphin trainer. Of course, this wouldn't be an interesting movie, if they didn't face some unexpected events along the way...

This is a real feel-good movie that almost everyone can enjoy. Some situations are totally hilarious, reminding me of japanese anime. The five main characters couldn't be more colourful and the acting was superb as well. Shinobu Yaguchi did an awesome job directing this movie, which is a mixture of a lot of nifty elements, from the great characters to the unbelievable humorous moments, this movie is just great.

I haven't watched Yaguchi's other works like Adrenaline Drive, for example, so I'm not sure how this one compares to them. But I'm sure if you like comedies and you're a bit open-minded, you'll like "Waterboys".

8 out of 13 people found the following review useful:
And I thought Chaplin was the funniest, 30 September 2004

Author: japhearttok from manila, philippines

"Waterboys" is the featured film on the opening night in this year's Eiga Sai in Manila. I didn't anticipate I would be laughing my toxins out. It's a hilarious movie. I thought I'd never laugh so hard again after watching a Charlie Chaplin movie years back. This Japanese film is incredibly and enjoyably funny. It totally amazes me how the Japanese are able to evoke the whole range of emotions in their audience, i.e., laughter in comedy films, profound sadness in drama. (I still haven't gotten over the heartache from watching "Grave of the Fireflies".) "Waterboys" has a very simple plot. It would have been banal and jejune in the hands of an ordinary storyteller. The storytelling technique was effortless, but the use of slow motion matched with a perfect comedic timing produced a remarkably hilarious film. To be able to make people laugh from one's belly and in so many continuous fractions of a minute is a gift. "Waterboys" cast and crew are gifted. I've never cracked up so hard in my whole life. The adrenalin kick from watching it is yet to subside. One disadvantage: I don't know if any Hollywood comedy films can ever make me laugh again.

2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
Synchro! Synchro! Synchro!, 21 March 2009

Author: Juggertrout from London, England

Waterboys is a zany, sweet comedy about a group of boys who get roped into starting a synchronised swimming team, and then have to get together a routine for an exhibition in a few weeks time! It's fun stuff that aims low and hits hard. There are lots of great sight gags and other slapstick comedy, but there's also an interesting love story and fantastic acting from the boys.

The film rolls along at a great pace, with Yaguchi a talented director treating us to lengthy tracking shots and other technical flourishes. The film never bores and always pleases, and as we head towards the climax, the comedy keeps coming, and the final 'routine' will delight you with its genius. A fun, endlessly rewatchable madcap comedy.

2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
Water Boys, 11 January 2005

Author: nakataohana from United States

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

This is a light hearted comedy of 5 young men in their last year of (boys only) high school who sign up for a swim team under the direction of a new female coach. The 5 young men who have seen themselves fail in other traditional sports, discover their strengths and overcome weaknesses in their pursuit to participate as a synchronized swim team at their school festival.

The plot had unexpected twists and turns that kept me laughing as new elements, such as the new girlfriend, a trainer who used non-traditional methods, an unexpected pregnancy, drag queens, and a girls high school were added. In Japan, synchronized swimming is normally seen as a women's sport.

It was a very enjoyable movie!

1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Not as fun as Swing Girls but pretty good..., 21 February 2006

Author: jmaruyama from Honolulu, HI

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Yaguchi Shinobu is quickly becoming one of my favorite Japanese directors. His movies don't pretend to have any agenda other than entertaining audiences. I enjoyed both his "Adrenaline Drive" and "Swing Girls" a lot and consider them some of my all-time favorite movies. "Waterboys" was made in-between the two aforementioned films, and while it shares the same type of lighthearted drama and infectious comedy of the others, I didn't quite warm up to it as much as the other films. Perhaps it has to do more with the subject matter at hand then anything else. I didn't find the humor behind an all male "synchro" swim team all that hilarious. Granted there are a lot of funny scenes in the movie especially when "Shall We Dance's" Takenaka Naoto begins training the boys using some very unconventional methods, like using the game "Dance Dance Revolution" to give the boys dance rhythm or using dolphin training exercises to improve their swimming. The ending performance was a bit painful to watch and many may cringe at the sight of skinny kids dancing to the J-Pop music of Puffy and Finger Five. That being said, I found "Waterboys" to be an enjoyable movie and while I don't like it as much as "Swing Girls", it certainly is another feather in the cap of director Yaguchi. Here's hoping he continues to make great and fun movies.

2 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
Great Movie!, 27 December 2006

Author: ekim-11 from United States

This was a wonderful movie. I thought it was hilarious beginning to the end. The formula of the movie has been done over and over again, a group of underdogs who rise to the occasion and prove all their doubters wrong. Yes it was a regular Hollywood-ish formula, but the actors were so enjoyable to watch, that it was really fresh to watch. The fact it was a story about a male synchronize swim team is already groundbreaking in my eyes. I enjoyed the facial expressions from both Sato and Suzuki during moments of disgust and surprise. And the Sea World Man is so funny. He resembles my uncle so much. I would definitely buy this movie and highly recommend it. Be forewarned, there are scenes that may offend people who aren't used to the culture of metro sexuality and/or homosexuality. If you can get past all that, you will truly enjoy this movie.

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