A One Mann’s Movies review of “The Swimmers” (2022).
Yet another film on my BAFTA catch-up list, this one nominated for “Best British Film”. “The Swimmers”, on Netflix, tells the true life story of two sisters, both professional swimmers, and their journey to escape the war in Syria.
Bob the Movie Man Rating(s):
Plot Summary:
Yusra Mardini (Nathalie Issa) and her sister Sara (Manal Issa) are fast in the water, thanks to the coaching of their father Ezzat (Ali Suliman), a swimmer himself, frustrated to have never got to the Olympics. But war in Syria intervenes and the sisters, together with their cousin Nizar (Ahmed Malek), decide to head for sanctuary in Germany with the hope of continuing their Olympic dreams.
Certification:
UK: 15; US: PG-13. (From the BBFC: “Sexual assault”.)
Talent:
Starring: Nathalie Issa, Manal Issa, Ali Suliman, Ahmed Malek, Matthias Schweighöfer, Kinda Alloush.
Directed by: Sally El Hosaini.
Written by: Sally El Hosaini & Jack Thorne.
Twitter Handle: #theswimmers.
The long road to Berlin. (Source: Netflix)
“The Swimmers” Review:
Positives:
- It’s all too easy – for me anyway – to see mass misery on the news and lump everyone into a “set”, removing their identity somehow and assuming that their individual hopes and dreams have somehow been ‘suspended’ for the duration. In contrast, this movie really hones in on the life of these two girls and shows them to be normal teenagers, wanting to train at their sports and party like every other teen in the world. And it brilliantly reflects how this life goes on, even in the face of war. For example, a magical scene, early on in the film, has the girls dancing manically to “Bulletproof” while behind them rocket strikes rain down on their home city. And in another scene, the girls are waiting at a bus stop, oblivious as an army jet screams over their heads.
- One of the best recent films on refugee migrations was the animated film “Flee“. But this is one of the best live-action depictions I’ve seen. There is real tension in the journey undertaken by the girls, particularly in a traumatic small-boat sequence. The whole film makes you want to bring back capital punishment for the evil people smugglers making money off people’s misery and, in many cases, their lives.
- Real-life sisters, Sara and Nathalie Issa, do a great job as the athletic young stars, and (I presume) did their own swimming which is impressive in its own right. And Matthias Schweighöfer, (so memorable as Ludwig Dieter in “Army of the Dead” and the Dieter-heavy sequel “Army of Thieves“), also provides good value as the enthusiastic coach Sven.
- Technically, the film is really well shot (cinematography by Christopher Ross), well edited (Iain Kitching) and the special effects, especially in recreating the environment at the end of the film, are first rate. Welsh director Sally El Hosaini keeps the action moving at a good pace such that, even at over 2 hours long, I was never bored. And some of the scenes (e.g. the bombing of a swimming pool) are utterly memorable.
Negatives:
- There’s was a “Wha.. How?” moment on the ‘lifevest beach’. With no guide, was everyone just lucky to land in that same place? It took me out of the story for a minute.
- Closing statements on what happened to the sisters in real-life are frustratingly incomplete. I can’t blame the film-makers for this since (as of February 2023) Sara’s ordeal is still going on. If you’ve seen the film, you can follow her latest news on this wiki page.
Triggers
Note that there is an attempted sexual assault (thwarted) within the story, but this may be triggering for some viewers.
Summary Thoughts on “The Swimmers”:
What an excellent fictionalised account of two sister’s extraordinary story. It really is an emotional film, a heady mix of hard knocks and feel-good (and ending, with the slight caveat above, on a feel-good high).
This “Best British Film” category is going to be really hard to call. How do you compare a film like this to a film like “Living“? It’s really tough.
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Trailer for “The Swimmers”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObN4krVV20Y .
