Against the Current (2009)

Wonderful Movie

Great Film overall

It's complicated... I really like the directing, acting and writing but, there are issues with the way it's shot that I just can't deny. As much as I love the storytelling and the fantastic performance but, there are also certain scenes that didn't need to exist.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

I'd say other have covered the ground in reviewing this movie quite nicely, so I'm not going to reaffirm the quiet and rather dark magic you can expect to find hereBut I do have one complaint that doesn't reflect on any aspect of the movie aside from some rather inaccurate editing. Let me say I've lived in Poughkeepsie and its environs most all my life. (Poughkeepsie, NY is located 75 north of NYC and 75 south of the Troy Dam where this swim begins.) So, here's the problem: The Hudson IS beautiful, no doubt and it does have tides, but it heads north to south; therefore you're not in Troy in one scene and Hyde Park at 80 miles south the next; you're not in Yonkers about 25 miles north of NYC in one scene and next at the Rondout Light at Kingston about 95 miles north of NYC. (There were many, many such examples throughout the film, and these are not necessarily as the movie might have ordered them.)So, why do that when all the showing the River in its natural ordering would have no affect on the story line and show off this River as it truly is and most likely most, if not all, reflect the actual filming order. Why? Sorry, just found it annoying having spent 8 years as a limnologist researching the River from Troy to the G. Washington Bridge at NYC.

This is probably one of the most insightful films I've watched ever.It acknowledges that emotional pain can sometimes be more debilitating than physical pain. I hope people who watch are able to grasp the honesty and the realness of the characters. Although Mary Tyler Moore's character was a little over the top. The acting was sublime and the music was beautiful. This may not be a film for the incurable optimist but then again depending on how you interpret it, it may be. One of it's most beautiful features is its portrayal of friendship, real friendship. The writer, actors and directors displayed enormous empathy for a difficult topic. This is a not a film for the feint hearted or anyone incapable of deep reflection.

Shame they got 3 mil to get this film made. No wonder this is the director's first film. I have no idea what the other reviewers are on! "Warm" "Authentic"? So many other films 5 times as good could have been made for that kind of money. Totally boring "woo-hoo, watch me I'm witty, indie, and I have actor friends in high places"! I couldn't watch this at all. Full of lengthy pretentious "so-called-smart/witty/ funny" dialog interspersed with the prerequisite Sundance indie feel piano track and indie alt-rock band interludes while I'm watching Joe Fiennes swim in the water. Exhilarating entertainment! NOT! Turned it off half-way through screaming in pain!

I had the chance to see this at AFI festival in Dallas. The movie is beautifully shot, and some of the scenes along the Hudson are gorgeous. The story line is intriguing, and unfolds as the swimmer makes his way through the challenge of swimming the Hudson. As the first reviewer said, he has a tragic story that compels him to take on this feat. I won't divulge the details, but as his story comes out, it makes you think hard about some of life's issues. Definitely worth seeing.The dialog is also well-written. Although this is not a comedy, the dialog is often quite funny. Fiennes may have gorgeous eyes, but I thought Justin Kirk's character really stood out in the film.