“Swimming Home” is a feature length film being a United Kingdom, Greece, Netherlands and Brazil production.
It’s opening music is ominous and haunting particularly reminding one of the swarms of buzzing flies over a severed pig’s head in “Lord of the Flies”. What is rotting in the film are spirits of human beings.
It is set in a villa on the coast of Greece with a spectacular vista. An apparent paradise but even in paradise there can be decomposition.
Josef (Christopher Abbot) is a poet. As a child his fleeing Bosnian parents left him in the woods and he was never to see them again. A traumatized and tortured man unable to write and perhaps even to live.
His wife Isabel (Mackenzie Davis) is a traumatized war correspondent witnessing so much terror and brutality her sole zone of comfort is returning to it.
Kitti (Ariane Labed) a green fingernailed self proclaimed botanist is found one day naked and floating in the villa’s swimming pool. She is invited to stay in the villa’s beach house.
Nina is the daughter of Josef and Isabel profoundly unhappy with the disturbed relationship of her parents. Laura (Nadine Labaki) is a long-time friend of Josef and Isabel.
Kitti is seemingly a free and easy character but become accustomed to her and she can be seen as an evil sexual and moralistic predator or perhaps a destructive liberator. Erotic and exotic but on both accounts exceedingly dangerous. The modern dance numbers in the film, seemingly incongruous are very much on point representing the poisonous character of Kitti. She is reminiscent of The Beast in “Lord of the Flies”.
A true Euro film brimming with symbolism and what an intellectual and delightful puzzle it presents to the viewer. What do you make of the “Passover” blood smear? Why does Kitti have an affinity for poisonous plants? And so forth and so on.
There is sophisticated savagery throughout the film. Could it be a “Lord of the Flies” without a Piggy. Just guess who Ralph is here!
A shocking ending that might rile even the most seasoned film buff.
The cast shines particularly Labed. Superb soundtrack by Coti K.
Directed by Christopher Abbot.
RKS 2024 Film Rating 94/100.
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