The Swimsuit Issue (2008) Allt flyter (original title)

Director:

Måns Herngren

Writers:

Måns Herngren (written by) &
Jane Magnusson (written by) ...
(more)

Release Date:

12 May 2010 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

A bunch of aging athletes decide to form the first Swedish all male synchronized swimming team.

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Jonas Inde	...	Fredrik
Ia Langhammer	...	Lillemor
Andreas Rothlin-Svensson	...	Charles
Jimmy Lindström	...	Larry
Peter Gardiner	...	Victor
Benny Haag	...	Peter
Shebly Niavarani	...	Börje
Kalle Westerdahl	...	Markus
Henrik Svalander	...	Bobo
Ossi Niskala	...	Jarmo
Paula McManus	...	Lotta
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Danilo Bejarano	...	Badvakten
Erik Bolin	...	Dykare
Bente Danielsson	...	Åsa
Amanda Davin	...	Sara
Dietrich Hollinderbäumer	...	Volker
Gertrud Larsson	...	Journailst
Jonas Lidman	...	Chef på budfirman
Ylva Lööf	...	Peters fru
Moa Myrén	...	Rika damen
Jens Nilsson	...	Innebandytränaren
Jan Henrik Stahlberg	...	Karl
Bisse Unger	...	Markus son
Christian Weber	...	Police Officer

Directed by
Måns Herngren

Writing credits
Måns Herngren		(written by) &
Jane Magnusson		(written by)
Brian Cordray		writer

Produced by
Gunnar Carlsson	....	co-producer
Rebecka Hamberger	....	producer (as Rebecka Hamberger Hulthén)
Lone Korslund	....	co-producer
Maria Köpf	....	co-producer
Martina Lundström	....	co-producer
Åke Lundström	....	co-producer
Patrick Ryborn	....	executive producer
Johan von der Lancken	....	line producer

Original Music by
Ebbot Lundberg

Cinematography by
Henrik Stenberg

Film Editing by
Fredrik Morheden

Casting by
Imor Hermann

Production Design by
Mikael Varhelyi

Art Direction by
Linda Janson

Costume Design by
Jaana Fomin

Makeup Department
Sara Klänge	....	makeup artist (as Sara Wallström)
Mareike Maya Mietke	....	makeup artist: Berlin
Therese Sandersson	....	assistant makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Anna Carlsten	....	first assistant director
Jonas Overton	....	first assistant director: second unit
Gustaf Åkerblom	....	assistant director

Art Department
Åsa Eriksson	....	props
Lasse Ingvarson	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Göran Edström	....	sound
Linda Forsén	....	dialogue editor
Thomas Huus	....	sound effects editor
Jens Johansson	....	dialogue editor
Martin Langenbach	....	foley artist
Patrik Strömdahl	....	sound
Jesper van Dongen	....	sound
Calle Wachtmeister	....	boom operator
Nicklas Lindh	....	sound (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Hassan Abdul Wahid	....	first assistant camera
Jonas Branting	....	lighting technician
Björn Engberg	....	second assistant camera
Paul Evans	....	second unit camera: operator
Jan-Paul Gauly	....	video technician
Pontus Hellberg	....	gaffer
Ricarda Hibbeln	....	first assistant camera: Berlin
Michael Kotschi	....	second unit director of photography: Berlin
Jonathan Lee	....	camera operator: underwater scenes
Jonathan Lee	....	key grip
Johan Phillips	....	Steadicam operator
Pierre Sigfridsson	....	lighting technician
Sophie Winqvist	....	director of photography: second unit

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Lina Sjöblom	....	costume assistant

Editorial Department
Linda Jildmalm	....	assistant editor

Transportation Department
Oliver Kujas	....	driver: cast

Other crew
Janina Bukowski	....	production accountant
Jeanette Frykberg	....	production coordinator
Jonatan Gedda	....	location scout
Oskar Johansson	....	location manager
Monica Kristiansson	....	script supervisor
Christine Larnfelt	....	assistant to producer
Hilda Lorentzon	....	production assistant
Lisa Ohlin	....	film consultant: Swedish Film Institute

Thanks
Josef Fares	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Fladen Film
• Gadda Five
• Nordisk Film
• Nordisk Film
• Sveriges Television (SVT)
• Zentropa Entertainments

Distributors

• Pandora Filmproduktion (2010) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Cinemax (2010) (Hungary) (TV)
• Film1 (2012) (Netherlands) (TV) (limited)
• Tribeca Film (2010) (USA) (all media) (subtitled)

Also Known As:

"Allt flyter" - Sweden (original title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

Sweden

Language:

Swedish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Sweden:Btl | Germany:o.Al. (f) | Netherlands:AL

Filming Locations:

Alexanderplatz, Mitte, Berlin, Germany

Company:

Fladen Film

Movie Connections:

References Bathing Beauty (1944)

Soundtrack:

Tonight

Warm, quirky, loaded with clichés, but a fun and different sidetrip for sure

The Swimsuit Issue (2008)

A fun, funny, lightweight but also delightful comedy with a strain of seriousness to give it some stickiness. I liked it, yes, though it's no critical masterpiece. The writing is fun and a little awkward (in Swedish or English), the plot a hair over the top, and the acting uneven. But hey, just like the main characters (members of an ad hoc Swedish male synchronized swim team) it has no pretensions.

And that's a relief. You want some fun? You want a view of a slightly different kind of Europe (and a different kind of Sweden if you are used to dour comedies and even more dour dramas)? See this. Fun and engaging.

The idea of the male swimmers suddenly taking on the world cup with their bumbling and barely rehearsed routine is part of why the silliness succeeds. You can't take it seriously. Don't expect an "Invictus" ending here where the good guys sweep it away (though by not expecting it, you never know). This is more about humility and hope and, in the one interpersonal focus, a father and daughter learning about each other.

In fact, the one actor who steals her scenes is the one key female, the daughter, played by Maria Langhammer. All the men--eight or nine--blur just a little, though there are three or so with central roles. What you might wish is that the interactions and subplots weren't so clichéd--the striving loser, the affected star, the stoic leader. All the bonding is heartwarming I suppose, and the gay jokes are funny but a bit thin. It's an uneven affair all around, with the hilarious hook that the synchronized team starts off at a party doing their stunt as a joke in women's bathing suits.

If only they had kept up their bumbling non-pretenses! We'd have something closer to the brilliance of "The Full Monty" than we end up with here, becoming instead more and more a sports movie, which is just plain weird when you see how it all got started in the first funny half hour.