neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Swimming
	Robert J. Siegel Lauren Ambrose, Joelle Carter, Jennifer Dundas Lowe, Jamie Harrold, Joshua Harto, Josh Pais, Joe Roseto 2000		A smart, shy young woman starts to come into her own during one summer in a Carolina beach town — party-hearty Myrtle Beach, S.C., to be exact. "Swimming" is similar to many modest coming-of-age films, and would be less interesting if it wasn't graced by the wonderful Lauren Ambrose of "Psycho Beach Party" and TV's "Six Feet Under" in the lead role of Frankie Wheeler. Derided as plain and stuck in the shadow of her controlling brother Neil (Josh Pais) and her pushy best friend Nicola (Jennifer Dundas Lowe), Frankie helps manage the family restaurant with little say in the operation and no control over the profits. Things change when Frankie agrees to help a local lifeguard's sexy, self-assured girlfriend Josee (Joelle Carter) get a waitress job at the restaurant. With encouragement from Josee and the romantic attentions of a benign stoner, Frankie experiences a self-esteem boost that doesn't sit well with Neil or Nicola. Ambrose brings vivacity to the familiar ugly-duckling theme, but this remains negligible.