blauregenbogen I love British reality of life and the sense of humour. We all have to find out a purpose in your life and then enjoy the moment

morrison-dylan-fan Going to get some presents in Birmingham for an upcoming birthday,I decided to treat myself to a visit to the oldest cinema in the UK (The Electric.) Being lucky the last two times in catching strong indie flicks, (Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool and You Were Never Really Here)I was happy to find that along with Abba-themed cocktails, an indie Comedy I've heard nothing about was screening,which led to me dipping into the pool.View on the film:Stripping the outline of The Full Monty for this adaptation of the real life Swedish Men's Synchronised Swimming team winning the World Championships, (they cameo in the movie)the screenplay by Aschlin Ditta dives into the unique "winning" status some British teams gain,where they trip at the final hurdle, but are treated like champions. Drawing British Sit-Com thumb-nail sketches of the team, Ditta spins an easy-going Comedy atmosphere linking the sports genre bonding of the team,with Scott finding fulfilment in the team work.Closing in on Scott's loneliness with stark close-ups, director Oliver Parker & cinematographer David Raedeker bring light to his life with colourful edits linked between each swim,and stylish underwater camera moves,which allows for the formation of each impressive synchronised move to be viewed. Holding the team together as his personal life goes out to sea, Rob Brydon gives a warm performance as Scott,with Brydon's breezy comedic skills making a splash, as Scott begins to swim with men.

andyge This is definitely a mainstream film with its eyes firmly on the box office... and there is nothing wrong with that!! It is to some extent comedy by numbers and you mayfeel manipulated and as if you have seen something similar before... however Aschlin Ditta does give the story some updated twists not least using synchronised swimming as the subject. This is reliable entertainment and there are a number of laugh out loud moments.The director Oliver Parker is a safe pair of hands and does bring some freshness and originality to the production. Great interaction between the actors especially Brydon, Mays,Graves, Carter,Akhar and Turgoose... although both Horrocks and Riley are wasted.There is a serious message in there about male loneliness and support but I would just go along and enjoy. A feelgood movie that should do well !

benpeyton Poor old Rob Brydon's Eric is down on his luck. Stuck in a dead end job whilst his wife's political career is flourishing, he convinces himself she's having an affair. As his world begins to crumble around him he seeks solace from the one thing that provides him with a hint of comfort; swimming. In the pool he splashes upon an unusual group of men ranging from 20 to 70 who are also floundering in the deep end of life, but just so happen to be part of a synchronised swimming team. He joins them and together they examine their lives, assess what brought them to this point and find themselves unlikely entrants in the unofficial Men's World Synchronised Swimming Championships.It's a fairly unique basis for a story and one that doesn't quite manage to stay afloat despite the best efforts of an excellent cast.Rob Brydon's natural charm and excellent comic timing is the film's saving grace. Immensely likeable despite his oafish behaviour he does his best with a script which, sadly, doesn't match his considerable talents.There's a handful of laughs to be had along the way, but certainly not enough to make full use of the fine ensemble. They're all a fairly likeable bunch, but not explored enough. Their surfaces are barely scratched so it's hard to feel sorry for any of them, apart from Jim Carter's Ted.A weak love story between Charlotte Riley's Susan and Luke, played by Rupert Graves, isn't believable and certainly not one to root for given the circumstances of the breakdown in his marriage.Director Oliver Parker produces interesting shots, particularly in some of the underwater scenes, and there's a decent score from Charlie Mole accompanying the action.Swimming With Men is a film to watch on a wet Sunday afternoon that will pass 96 minutes, but one that you will probably forget as soon as the credits roll.