December 1, 2010: Men Who Swim
Telling the story of an all-male synchronized swimming team from Sweden, Men Who Swim is a great little documentary which is well-suited to the medium and its capabilities.
Anchored by a Welshman who permanently relocated to Sweden several years ago and now has a wife and children there, the film documents the coming together of a motley group of guys who can’t quite find a sport that suits them, so they decide to explore new territory by hiring an ex-synchronized swimmer to coach them at weekly lessons to keep them fit and keep them learning. They make real progress but then hit a wall and stagnate, until they learn that men in other countries are doing the same thing and there’s an annual tournament bringing together teams from all over Europe for a competition. They decide that they will compete, which gives them the goal and the focus they needed.
The men continue to struggle, but they stick with it and in the end they go to Milan for the competition and make quite a respectable showing. What makes the film medium so great for this story is that synchronized swimming is so visual by nature, providing plenty of relevant images to bring to the screen, but it can all be supplemented by personal interviews in various places, and the facial expressions and comical banter of these people makes for a wonderful narrative of trying to find something a little different in life to be proud of. Men Who Swim is well worth a look.
Makes good use of documentary form.
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