Swimming Pool (2003)

A British mystery author visits her publisher's home in the South of France, where her interaction with his unusual daughter sets off some touchy dynamics.

Director:

François Ozon

Writers:

François Ozon (screenplay), Emmanuèle Bernheim

Stars:

Charlotte Rampling, Charles Dance, Ludivine Sagnier

2 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charlotte Rampling	...	Sarah Morton
Ludivine Sagnier	...	Julie
Charles Dance	...	John Bosload
Jean-Marie Lamour	...	Franck
Marc Fayolle	...	Marcel
Mireille Mossé	...	Marcel's Daughter
Michel Fau	...	First Man
Jean-Claude Lecas	...	Second Man
Emilie Gavois-Kahn	...	Waitress at Cafe (as Emilie Gavois Kahn)
Erarde Forestali	...	Old Man
Lauren Farrow	...	Julia
Sebastian Harcombe	...	Terry Long
Frances Cuka	...	Lady on the Underground
Keith Yeates	...	Sarah's Father
Tricia Aileen	...	John Bosload's Secretary

Storyline

Sarah Morton is a famous British mystery author. Tired of London and seeking inspiration for her new novel, she accepts an offer from her publisher John Bosload to stay at his home in Luberon, in the South of France. It is the off-season, and Sarah finds that the beautiful country locale and unhurried pace is just the tonic for her--until late one night, when John's indolent and insouciant French daughter Julie unexpectedly arrives. Sarah's prim and steely English reserve is jarred by Julie's reckless, sexually charged lifestyle. Their interactions set off an increasingly unsettling series of events, as Sarah's creative process and a possible real-life murder begin to blend dangerously together.

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Plot Keywords:

topless female nudity | swimming | female pubic hair | female full frontal nudity | bilingual | 

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Taglines:

Dive into this summer's sexiest mystery

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content, nudity, language, some violence and drug use

Did You Know?

Trivia

Charlotte Rampling's character Sarah is named after her sister, who killed herself at age 23. She told The Guardian, "I thought that after such a very long time of not letting her be with me that I would like to bring her back into my life."

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Goofs

Inside Sarah's bedroom there is a window less than outside. In particular, that one on the inside left wall, near the corner, beside the writing desk, which, otherwise, can be seen in the outside shoot (in that room there are two windows on that side and one window and a french window on the side of the balcony).

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Quotes

Julie: [in French; subtitled] AHH! You scared me!
Sarah Morton: [in French] Who are you? What are you doing in my house?
Julie: [in French] Your house? This is my house! I should be asking you.
[short pause; now speaking English]
Julie: Are you English?
Sarah Morton: [in English] That's correct. I'm Sarah Morton, I'm a writer and my publisher, John Bosload, is letting me have this house.
Julie: Ah, so you're Daddy's latest conquest.
Sarah Morton: You're his daughter?
Julie: So what? He didn't say I was coming?
Sarah Morton: No, he didn't tell me you were coming.
[...]

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Alternate Versions

The U.S. release is available in two forms: the unrated version and the "R" rated version. The unrated version contains full frontal nudity which was edited out of the "R" rated version to avoid an "NC-17" rating.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Worst Movie Plot Twists (2015)

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Soundtracks

Mirror Ball ('Let's do it')
(Steve Everitt)
Ref. Disque ATMOS 126
With grateful permission from KOKA MEDIA

User Reviews

A really European movie

First of all: I like this type of film very much! I was surprised by many comments that talk about a 'foreign film'. As if films from other countries than the USA should have to prove themselves extra... No way! On the contrary! Living in Europe, this isn't a foreign film for me! I was brought up in the sixties, and enjoyed the film-noir genre, the character movies, the French and Italian philosophical movies, the black-and-white films, the films made by the actors, the director and the plot together. So, Swimming Pool is a film that makes me sit on the point of my chair for more than 1 hour and a half. It is an intriguing story, the entire atmosphere is inviting, makes you feel good and being with Sarah/Charlotte all at once. The interference with Sarah and Julie is ambiguous. The continuing layer of lesbian love lays upon their relation, no matter what they do to each other in the beginning of the story. It's a kind of hidden suspense... Ludivine (who plays Julie) is a beautiful, well shaped young girl, with a marvelous body, but even Charlotte Rampling is outspoken and gave herself to the film and to the director, Francois Ozon. A great movie. Just absorb what you see...

Details

Country:

France UK

Language:

English French

Release Date:

1 August 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Swimming Pool

Filming Locations:

England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$287,296, 6 July 2003

Gross USA:

$10,130,108

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$22,441,497

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fidélité Productions, France 2 Cinéma, Gimages

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1