The Swimmer

Burt Lancaster    d/  Frank Perry

Fine adaptation of the Cheever short story. As Neddy makes his way across the valley in which he used to live his psyche, history and sense of self slowly come unraveled. By the end we see a lost, abandoned loser in the upper middle class wars of suburban Connecticut.

The story was an allegory meant to showcase the shallow, vacuous lifestyle and values of the strivers who had 'made it.' BL was superb...he managed to humanize the role and engage our sympathies as he struggled to make sense of his place among these people.

Imaginative camera work and the technicolor process gave the film visual interest. Film is a powerful, largely forgotten remnant of the last days of the studio era.

8