NYAD | Film Review

Diana Nyad (Annette Bening), a 64-year-old swimmer attempts to become the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida.

I have to admit, I probably never would have watched this film if the lead actresses weren't nominated for Oscars for their performances. The premise doesn't necessarily appeal to me.

As expected, the film is exactly what it says, so you'll probably already know if it's for you or not.

While the story is inspiring, it isn't the most interesting thing to watch.

I have wondered whether it suits the movie format at all, because there is so much about the film that didn't work for me. And as much as I understand why stories about personal triumph and never giving up are important to tell, there were probably better ways to do it. I'm not sure if Diana Nyad ever wrote a book, but that would probably have been a more interesting way to tell the story.

It seems to me that to really enjoy this film, you either have to have an interest in Nyad herself, or in swimming as a sport. I didn't have either of those, so the film wasn't really for me.

Another reason I didn't love it was because of the character of Nyad. Of course, we don't need the protagonists of films to be likeable, but for this one, it feels like Nyad needs to be likeable so we as the audience can root for her. Because I never connected with her, I didn't care too much about her goal.

But that being said, there are good performances throughout, and all of the actors were great in their roles. The supporting actors didn't have a lot to do, because this is entirely Bening's movie, but Jodie Foster (Bonnie Stoll) was the emotional heart of the story.

The film is two hours long, and while it never feels like it outstays its welcome, it definitely could have been shorter without losing anything fundamental to the plot.

Overall, this film wasn't as impactful or entertaining as I wanted it to be, and while the performances were great, and the message of the film was inspiring, it wasn't nearly as good as it could have been.

5/10