The Deep End (2001)

Truly Dreadful Film

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

The premise seems so unlikely that it may raise a few eyebrows, so some early suspension of disbelief is called for. In particular, one has to wonder what state of mind the protagonist must be in, to make some of the decisions she does. But then, "The Deep End" is less about the premise, subsequent events, or plot devices, and more about strength, bonds and love, that are often at their loudest and most poignant when unspoken. This film's message can be found in its quiet spaces, for those who know how to listen. A strong and different type of performance from Tilda Swinton, with perfectly-pitched supporting shows from Goran Visnjic and Jonathan Tucker. Minor characters are fairly two-dimensional, and so hammy that it's verging on camp, but they only serve as vehicles to emphasize traits of the main characters or to convey a certain atmosphere, and this does not overly detract from the message, or from one's enjoyment of the film. Worth a detour.

During the opening credits, I'd noticed that "The Deep End" was adapted from a novel which I'd hoped was going to be done well. Alas directors McGehee and Siegel fail to create a good movie out of it, granted I didn't read the novel. Tilda Swinton single-handedly holds up the weight of an aloof and stilted script which has some glaring misgivings and failures. First and foremost the idiocy of the main character of which the tension gets created is an eye-roller, the dialog of Swinton and actor Goran Visnjic seems robotic, and the dysfunctionality of Swinton's character and her son in communication is poor feeling contrived. The movie's fight scenes are poorly done though editing and scene fades are on the better side. Swinton is tense and stressed out, believably so. Visnjic is stoic though satisfactory. Other actors as family are OK. The direction is mixed, and some scenes work while others seems more wooden or absurd, unfortunately more so towards the end. Mixed to poor - 5.5/10 - not really recommended

Sorry to disappoint those who liked it, but to each his/her own. I saw it advertised on HBO and it was given 3 stars. I like Tilda Swinton and Tahoe is a gorgeous place so I thought OK this is going to be good.WRONG... It was trite, predictable, the acting was awful (by some of the actors) and had blasé stereotypes. Maybe, just maybe if this had been a period piece, set in the 60's, the big "threat" would have been more believable.There was NOTHING I liked about this film! I felt so dumb because, as I have done with other films, I kept waiting for it to redeem itself. That NEVER happened. All I did was waste time and walk away feeling cheated and grossly mislead by the 3 stars.I guess if I had to say a good thing about it? I didn't fork over $14.50 hard earned dollars to see this one.There I just saved you some valuable time.

Tilda Swinton's son, Jonathon Tucker, is a homosexual trumpet player about to enter college on a scholarship, but she knows nothing about his sexual proclivities. (I think; I missed the first few minutes.) Swinton's husband is a naval officer on an extended trip overseas. The family home is a comfortable dwelling on the shore of Lake Tahoe, on the Nevada side.A man approaches her, informs her of Tucker's sexual activities, and threatens to expose him unless she hands over fifty thousand dollars. Shove comes to push, the extortionist falls off the dock, lands on the upright flukes of an anchor, and is killed.The hysterical Swinton dumps his body in the lake, where it's promptly found by an unlucky fisherman. Swinton is then visited by still another blackmailer, a handsome young man, not unsympathetic. But the big boss behind the scam is pitiless and wants the whole boodle, which Swinton is unable to raise, due to the absence of her husband.Thereafter it gets twisted. The evil die, while the good flourish as the green bay tree.It would have been a good black-and-white B movie from Warners in the 1930s or 1940s -- blackmail scheme goes awry. What lifts it out of that particular genre are two things.The presence and the performance of Tilda Swinton, which is really quite good. Her features are idiosyncratic. Her rather ordinary face features these startlingly blue eyes topped by brows so pale that they make La Giocanda look like Salma Hayek. They're both piercing and terrified. And she's a fine actress, judging from this film, despite her being barely handsome enough to serve as romantic lead without a big do-over.The second thing is the location shooting at Lake Tahoe. It's immediately identifiable for where it is. Those granite rocks of the Sierra Nevada are unmistakable. But, with a little suspension of belief, it could be a fairy-tale Switzerland. But don't even think of living in Lake Tahoe. You couldn't afford a pup tent.It's worth seeing -- at least once.