Night Swim is an American supernatural horror film based on the 2014 short film of the same name. The film stars Wyatt Russell, Kerry Condon, Amélie Hoeferle and Gavin Warren. James Wan and Jason Blum serve as producers.
Night Swim was released in theaters on January 5, 2024, by Universal Pictures.
Plot[]
In 1992, a young girl, Rebecca Summers, goes out to her family pool one night to retrieve a toy boat belonging to her terminally ill brother, Tommy. While she tries to get the boat, something in the pool pulls her underwater.
In the present day, the Waller family—Ray, Eve, and children Izzy and Elliot—by place are seeking a new, permanent residence after Ray has been forced to retire from his baseball career due to multiple sclerosis. They decide to purchase a house with a swimming pool in the backyard, especially after hearing that the pool would be good for Ray’s condition. Ray scratches his hand while working to clear out the pool in the back yard. When the pool maintenance come to inspect it, they reveal that the pool is essentially self-sustaining, taking its water from an underground spring in the area.
As he spends more time in the pool as part of his therapy, Ray's illness seems to go into remission. However, Eve becomes concerned at the changes she sees in her husband. Izzy and Elliot each get attacked by something in the pool, and the family cat goes missing. During a pool party, their realtor, Kay, tells Eve about the previous owners' daughter Rebecca Summers drowning in the pool shortly before Ray seemingly forces a child underwater and almost drowns himself, although this is attributed to a side-effect of his illness.
Tracking down the Summers family after learning that there is a long history of disappearances in the house, Eve meets with Lucy, Rebecca's mother. Lucy explains that the water that now sustains the pool was once part of a healing spring, but in order to use the water someone else must be sacrificed to it; Lucy was compelled to sacrifice Rebecca to the pool’s demonic entity to heal Tommy's illness. Eve is horrified to realize that Ray is now being healed by the pool but it will take one of the children as a sacrifice.
Eve returns to the house to find that Ray is being directly controlled by the demon, which traps Elliot in the pool and attempts to kill Izzy. Eve tries to save her son while Izzy confronts the demon possessing her father, eventually assaulting him with a baseball bat. Eve manages to retrieve an unconscious Elliot, and is guided to the surface of the pool by Rebecca's spirit. Once back in the yard, Izzy's assault and Elliot's condition help Ray regain control of himself. To stop the demon from attacking his children, Ray sacrifices himself to it.
Deciding to remain in the house so that no one else falls victim to the demon, Eve, Izzy and Elliot make arrangements for the pool to be filled in to stop such a thing happening again.
Cast[]
- Wyatt Russell as Ray Waller
- Kerry Condon as Eve Waller
- Amélie Hoeferle as Izzy Waller
- Gavin Warren as Elliot Waller
- Jodi Long as Lucy Summers
- Ayazhan Dalabayeva as Rebecca Summers
- Nancy Lenehan as Kay
- Eddie Martinez as Coach E
- Elijah J. Roberts as Ronin
- Rahnuma Panthaky as Dr. Sridhar
- Ben Sinclair as pool tech
- Ellie Araiza as Angel
Production[]
The film was announced in January 10, 2023, following the success of M3GAN. Bryce McGuire wrote and directed based on his 2014 short film of the same name.[1] Wyatt Russell and Kerry Condon were announced to star, with James Wan and Jason Blum producing under their banners, Atomic Monster Productions and Blumhouse Productions.[1]
In April 19, Amélie Hoeferle, Gavin Warren, Nancy Lenehan and Jodi Long were added to the cast.[2] Principal photography began in April 2023, in Los Angeles.[3]
Music[]
Mark Korven, who previously scored Blumhouse's The Black Phone, has composed the score for the film.
Release[]
Night Swim was released in theaters in the United States on January 5, 2024, by Universal Pictures.[4] It was previously scheduled to be released on January 19, 2024, before it was changed on April 7, 2023.[1]
Reception[]
Box office[]
The film is projected to gross up to $11 million from 3,200 theaters in its opening weekend. The film has made $1.45 million from it's Thursday previews.[5]
Critical response[]
On Rotten Tomatoes, 25% of 88 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.3/10. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 42 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.
Critics have not been kind to Night Swim. Frank Scheck of the The Hollywood Reporter called the film "the shallow end of the horror-film pool" and said "despite the filmmaker's best efforts to drum up suspense via the usual jump scares, Night Swim turns out to be just as silly as it sounds".[6]
Alissa Wilkinson of the The New York Times gave a positive review. She wrote that the third act's goofiness undermined the "emotional resonance it's going for", but ended the review with, "For a winter horror release — typically a great time to go to the movie theater, munch popcorn and get your pants scared off — it does the job".[7]
Videos[]
Trailers[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 D'Alessandro, Anthony (2023-01-10). Atomic Monster & Blumhouse Going For Night Swim With Wyatt Russell & Kerry Condon; Bryce McGuire Directing & Writing.
- ↑ Amélie Hoeferle, Gavin Warren, Nancy Lenehan & Jodi Long Join Blumhouse & Atomic Monster For A Night Swim (April 19, 2023).
- ↑ Night Swim Production List (January 31, 2023).
- ↑ Galuppo, Mia (2023-04-07). Blumhouse Horror Night Swim Moves Up January Release.
- ↑ D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 5, 2024). ‘Night Swim’ Takes Dip Into Post Holiday Frame With $1M+ Previews, $8M-$12M Outlook – Box Office (in en-US).
- ↑ Scheck, Frank (2024-01-04). Night Swim Review: Wyatt Russell and Kerry Condon Struggle to Keep Low-Rent Horror Flick Afloat.
- ↑ Wilkinson, Alissa (2024-01-04). Night Swim Review: Hold Your Breath, Forever.
External links[]
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