- Actors: Burt Lancaster, Janet Landgard, Kim Hunter, Janice Rule
- Directors: Frank Perry
- Producers: Frank Perry, Roger Lewis
- Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
- Language: English
- Subtitles: English, French, Japanese, Georgian
- Region: (US and Canada This DVD will probably NOT be viewable in other countries. Read more about DVD formats.)
- Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
- Release Date: April 29 2003
- Run Time: 95 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00005JKQ6
-
Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#13,624 in DVD (See Top 100 in DVD)
- #21 in DVD > Drama > Love & Romance > Crumbling Marriages
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon.com
Burt Lancaster gives one of his most daringly complex performances in The Swimmer, a fascinating adaptation of John Cheever's celebrated short story. At first it seems that middle-aged businessman Ned Merrill (Lancaster) is merely enjoying a spontaneous adventure, swimming from pool to pool among the well-tended estates of his affluent Connecticut neighborhood. But as Ned encounters a variety of neighbors, we see from their reactions that Ned's on an entirely different kind of journey--that he is balanced on the edge of some mysterious psychosis that we can't fully understand until the film's final, devastating image. A compelling portrait of loss, refracted memories, and deep-rooted emotional denial, The Swimmer sprung from the same late-'60s soil that yielded similarly ground-breaking literary films like The Graduate and Goodbye, Columbus. It's an egotistical showcase for the physical prowess of its 55-year-old star, but Lancaster turns it into something deeper, more disturbing, and completely unforgettable. --Jeff Shannon
Video Details
Burt Lancaster plays a wealthy, middle-aged advertising man embarked on a long and revelatory journey through suburban Connecticut. Travelling from house to house, and from swimming pool to swimming pool, Lancaster comes face to face with an incident in his past. Stars Academy Award winner Burt Lancaster.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
This movie reminds me of Walt Whitman's poem "I Sing the Body Electric"...
Feb 5 2007
Format:DVD
I just watched this movie and now deem it one of the best movies ever made....The whole story is a brilliant metaphor for the individual who reaches mid-life hoping to have made something wonderful of his own life and realizes that his "place" in society will not allow him to be all he can be. He must be just like all the others and never have an original thought of his own. The storyline is linear - he goes from pool to pool in a straight line - but his emotional state may well have been completely nonlinear and understandable only to those who have a deeper understanding of what it means to be human.
Unforgettable after...25 years
Jun 2 2004
Format:VHS Tape
I first watched this film..in another language when I was a kid. How best to illustrate the impact it had on me? After 25 years I still remembered the story of it. Of a man swimming home and of the last scene where he coming home to find an empty, isolated house.
Flash back to the present. I found this movie by accident in the library. Wondering if it's the same one stuck in my mind for so long so I checked it out. The impact of watching it this time was still there (just a bit less since I already know the ending).
All in all it's really worth seeing. It left an unforgettably emotional impact on me..as a 10-year-old child. That's how best I could put it to say how good the movie is.
challenging aesthetics
May 17 2004
Format:DVD
an unforgettable film.
it defies all explanation and remains a hidden classic art film.
comparisons to the twilight zone seem to do it little justice, not that i am knocking the twilight zone at all.
but perry's film is far more complex and multi latered than that.
and lancaster;
the older he got the more risks he took and this is a brauva performance.
we see his world slowly decaying. we know whats coming, yet you will probabaly still walk away mumbling incoherently to yourself for a few hours afterwords.
but,if you're looking for a fast paced film, look elsewhere. this film challenges you and from what ive seen of some of the reivews it was a bit too challenging for some (right-o new jersey?), but if you are prepared to reconsider your views on what film is and isnt, then be prepared to be walloped.
it defies all explanation and remains a hidden classic art film.
comparisons to the twilight zone seem to do it little justice, not that i am knocking the twilight zone at all.
but perry's film is far more complex and multi latered than that.
and lancaster;
the older he got the more risks he took and this is a brauva performance.
we see his world slowly decaying. we know whats coming, yet you will probabaly still walk away mumbling incoherently to yourself for a few hours afterwords.
but,if you're looking for a fast paced film, look elsewhere. this film challenges you and from what ive seen of some of the reivews it was a bit too challenging for some (right-o new jersey?), but if you are prepared to reconsider your views on what film is and isnt, then be prepared to be walloped.
Want to see more reviews on this item?
Most recent customer reviews
Frank Perry's masterpiece
This film is unique in all the american filmography. You may exhibit several examples about the question of the loneliness , like Sunset boulevard, Midnight cowboy, the naked kiss... Read more
Published on April 30 2004 by Hiram Gomez Pardo
Swimming in paranoia.
A surreal film about one man's descent into shock, paranoia and despair. Burt Lancaster is riveting in his portrayal of a wealthy executive who cannot (or will not) face the facts... Read more
Published on April 26 2004 by Ohio Media Man
Like the "Twilight Zone"?
Sure, it's like a "Twilight Zone" episode. In fact, I wish it were more like one, because then it would not be the 90 minute mess that it is. Read more
Published on Feb 28 2004
a fine acheevement
An interesting but flawed film tracing man's journey from the foetus to the grave, using the unusual premise of one man swimming a succession of his neighbours' backyard pools to... Read more
Published on Feb 12 2004 by Peter Letheby
A MASTERPIECE, Plain and Simple
Or not so plain and hardly simple.
My admiration for the shorter fiction of John Cheever knows no bounds, but this movie goes an already great short story one better. Read more
Published on Feb 3 2004 by Eric J. Matluck
THOUGHT PROVOKING MUST SEE FILM
The Swimmer is one my all time favorite films. The DVD transfer is absolutely incredible. The music is one of the best soundtracks I have ever heard, haunting, sad, exciting. Read more
Published on Nov 6 2003 by Trevor William Douglas
Mysterious
This is one of those films that leaves you thinking, but you wonder what you're thinking about. It intentionally ends ambiguously so that the viewer isn't exactly sure what he or... Read more
Published on Oct 31 2003 by Dr. W. G. Covington, Jr.
Great Lancaster, But Terrible Directorial Decisions
While aspects of this movie are rewarding and enjoyable, the film as a whole does not succeed. The filmmakers are to be commended for their audacious effort to adapt John Cheever's... Read more
Published on Aug 13 2003 by Louis A. Mandarini
One of the best movies I ever saw
This is such a moving film. As I get older it takes on new meaning. We learn with age if we are smart enough to recognize it. Read more
Published on July 23 2002 by kametamorphic
Astonishingly Gripping
I'm a real movie buff, but can't believe I missed this one... The story of a mid life hansome man Burt Lancaster, swimming home across the county,via his neighbors back yard... Read more
Published on May 5 2002 by Franci
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
