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Home / Interviews & Articles / Swimming Upstream |
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This page was last updated on 1st April 2007. Page launched on 4th September 2004. Site launched on 8th February 2004.
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INTERVIEWS & ARTICLES
Swimmin Upstream Triple J Film Reviews, abc.net.au, Australia, 2003
Director: Russell Mulcahy Country: AUS Release: 27/02/03 Official Website: http://hoyts.ninemsn.com.au/movie/320.asp Rated: 3/5 Cast: Jesse Spencer, Judy Davis, Geoffrey Rush, Mark Hembrow
Swimming Upstream is the second 'swim movie' to be made by an Australian filmmaker in nearly as many months. John Polson went to America to make teen 'Fatal Attraction' Swimfan (2002), while Highlander's Russell Mulcahy stayed at home to make the Australian-American co-production, Swimming Upstream. Based on the life of 1950s Brisbane swim champ Anthony Fingleton, Swimming Upstream is a nice solid piece of Australian filmmaking.
Tony Fingleton spent his youth competing in the pool with his brother and also for his father's attention and affection. With the dysfunctional father-son relationship at the core of the film, fittngly Swimming Upstream has been called "Shine in the swimming pool" with the inclusion of Geoffrey Rush in the film's acting line up. Now it's Rush's turn to dish out some of his own unfair paternal treatment as a sadistic father, although he may just be a fish out of water in Swimming Upstream. He does seem somewhat miscast as an out-of-work wharfie with it in for his second born.
Judy Davis (Barton Fink) is Dora, Tony's long-suffering mum and Jesse Spencer ('Billy' from Neighbours), rises to the challenge as the tormented Anthony. The scenes shared between Davis and Spencer in particular are where Swimming Upstream excels. They are quite beautiful and breathe some depth into what could have amounted to a fairly straight sports film.
Swimming Upstream is an odd blend of the past and the present in both style and content as you might expect from director Russell Mulcahy, a filmmaker who has spent the better part of his career in music video and commercials production. His use of split-screens and music video-inspired fantasy sequences don't taint the proceedings however, and neither does the techno score by Run Lola Run pair Johnny Klimek and Reinhold Heil. What we're left with is a mesh of the 'then' and the 'now', part authentic Australian period film, and part jazzy sports flick.
Swimming Upstream is very genuine in its intent and authentic in its execution, although its extremely episodic script might make it a long way from being the best Aussie film ever made. It was nice though to be reminded of just how great Australian film was and still can be.
Swimming Upstream does just that.
3 stars
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