SWINGERS (1996) A film review by Nick Schaden Copyright 1997 Nick Schaden
Don't you love it how low budget independent movies absolutely amaze you every so often? "Swingers" is that kind of movie. With a hilarious witty plot, and great acting, I fell in love with this little gem. Not since watching "Reservoir Dogs" have I ever seen a low budget independent (and under hyped) flick that I enjoyed this much.
"Swingers" tells the story of young L.A. twenty something guys, who, among other activities, cruise for dates and love. They hit on women at bars, they swagger and act tough. They constantly talk to each other (in rapid fire Woody Allen talk no less) about the art of picking up women. The irony of "Swingers" though, is that these guys are a hopeless case in finding love, women are usually repelled away from their machismo, not attracted to it. It's a great and witty plot, and watching these guys stumble over themselves is wonderful.
In addition, the male stars of the movie, Mike (Jon Favreau), Trent (Vince Vaughn), Rob (Ron Livingston) and Sue (Patrick Van Horn) all act wonderfully. Whether it's Mike ranting and raving about his ex-girlfriend, or Trent comparing the directors Scorcese and Tarentino to each other, or Sue playing far too competitively in a video game, it's hilarious.
Finally, little touches in the movie made it even more interesting to me. For example, in one of the funnier scenes of the movie, we watch Mike completely blow a potential date by leaving message after message on her answering machine late at night. Later on, when Mike gets another lucky phone number, if the audience pays close attention they can see that the camera angles, music, etc. is EXACTLY the same as in the earlier scene botched by Mike. It's a great idea, as the audience can't help but cringe at the possibility of poor Mike screwing up his chance for love again. In addition, we see several nods to Tarentino's "Reservoir Dogs", whether a poster of "Mr. Blonde" in the background, or a spoof of "Reservoir Dogs"'s famous slow motion intro sequence. Finally, the movie wraps up neatly with a cool and well done ending.
All in all, "Swingers" blows away the far majority of any "blockbusters" that have come out this summer. I highly recommend it.
Nick's Rating: +4 (Highly Recommended)
*** Movies rated from -4 (worst) to +4 (best), 0 = average rating ***
-- Nick Schaden Send your comments to: cpunut@uslink.net Check out all of Nick's reviews at: http://uslink.net/~cpunut/movies.html
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