This film is part of Rentals
Swimming with Men
Rob Brydon leads a motley crew who pool their resources as part of a synchronised swimming team, in this buoyant feelgood comedy.
Director: Oliver Parker
Overview
Eric (Rob Brydon) is a middle-aged man seemingly at a juncture in his life. Estranged from his wife and with no real friends to speak of, he decides at a stroke to join a male synchronised swimming team. What begins as a way to meet new friends soon becomes more momentous when the group is entered into the world championships in Milan.
Rob Brydon here revels in a all-too rare leading film role, playing somewhat against type as a staid accountant. But it's the support team who add the decorative touch, with a backup including Daniel Mays, Jim Carter, Adeel Akhtar and Thomas Turgoose. While echoes of The Full Monty resound knowingly, Swimming with Men is in a lane of its own; in particular with its serious undercurrent stressing the importance of middle-aged men looking after their physical and mental health.
Related
Ballywalter Ballywalter
Comedy 2020 90 mins Director: Prasanna Puwanarajah
Seána Kerslake is superb as caustic cab driver, Eileen, who makes an unlikely connection with regular passenger and local comedian, Shane (Patrick Kielty), in Prasanna Puwanarajah’s charming debut.
Little English Little English
Comedy 2022 99 mins Director: Pravesh Kumar
A raucous and audacious comedy following the lives of a dysfunctional British Punjabi family.
Something Always Happens Something Always Happens
Comedy 1934 70 mins Director: Michael Powell
Michael Powell’s sprightly comedy about a freeloading charmer who romances the daughter of a wealthy petrol station owner.
Joy Ride Joy Ride
Comedy 2023 95 mins Director: Adele Lim
Four unlikely friends embark on a once-in-a-lifetime international adventure in this riotous and unapologetically explicit story of identity and self-discovery.
The Innocent The Innocent
Comedy 2022 98 mins Director: Louis Garrel
Louis Garrel’s unique French comedy-heist-romantic-thriller comes loaded with charm and humour.
Amanda Amanda
Comedy 2022 95 mins Director: Carolina Cavalli
Carolina Cavalli’s darkly comic feature debut follows a young woman who returns to home town to find she doesn't know anyone, so decides to rekindle her friendship with an old agoraphobic childhood friend.
Local Hero Local Hero
Comedy 1983 111 mins Director: Bill Forsyth
An American oil-man goes native while on a mission to buy up a Scottish fishing village, in Bill Forsyth’s tribute to Scotland’s irresistible charm.
Spring Meeting Spring Meeting
Comedy 1941 94 mins Director: Walter C. Mycroft and Norman Lee
A penniless woman’s attempts at matchmaking her way to riches go awry when her son falls for the wrong daughter of a nobleman.
Mindhorn Mindhorn
Comedy 2017 88 mins Director: Sean Foley
Julian Barratt is hilarious as the washed-up actor forced to reprise his 80s TV role as a sleuth with a robotic truth-telling eye, to help catch a deranged killer.
In the Loop In the Loop
Comedy 2009 106 mins Director: Armando Iannucci
Armando Iannucci returns to the world of his hit show The Thick of It as Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi) and Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) deal with a Middle-East crisis of their own making.
The Big Sick The Big Sick
Comedy 2017 120 mins Director: Michael Showalter
The hilarious, breakout indie comedy about a Pakistan-born comedian and his culture-clash relationship with an American grad student.
Withnail & I Withnail & I
Comedy 1988 107 mins Director: Bruce Robinson
Richard E. Grant steals the show in the indomitable cult classic following two washed-up actors as they embark on a booze-filled getaway to the Lake District.
Early Man Early Man
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2018 89 mins Director: Nick Park
In Aardman’s latest animated adventure, Caveman Dug and his pet hog, Hognog, must unite their tribe if they're are to survive the threat of pompous tyrant Lord Nooth.
Ali & Ava Ali & Ava
Drama 2020 94 mins Director: Clio Barnard
Clio Barnard’s latest film is a tremendously warm and tenderly written love story.
The Great Escaper The Great Escaper
Drama 2023 96 mins Director: Oliver Parker
Michael Caine and the late Glenda Jackson deliver superb performances in this heart-warming story of a war veteran’s escape from his care home to join the 70th anniversary of the D-day landings in Normandy.
Out of Darkness Out of Darkness
Horror 2024 87 mins Director: Andrew Cumming
Bringing a whole new meaning to the term ‘period film’, Andrew Cumming’s Palaeolithic horror movie is a true original.
The Peasants The Peasants
Drama 2023 115 mins Director: Hugh Welchman and Dorota Kobiela
Using an advanced oil painting animation technique, The Peasants is a visually thrilling rendering of Władysław Reymont’s Nobel Prize-winning tale.
The Iron Claw The Iron Claw
Biopic 2023 132 mins Director: Sean Durkin
Compelling sports drama about the real-life Von Erich brothers and their tragic journey to the top of professional 1980s wrestling.
Samsara Samsara
Drama 2023 114 mins Director: Lois Patiño
Berlin Film Festival award winner Lois Patiño’s assured third feature transports us to magical places in Laos and Zanzibar, where the visible and the invisible merge.
Gassed Up Gassed Up
Drama 2023 102 mins Director: George Amponsah
A group of London teenage boys turn to motorbike crime for survival in George Amponsah’s high-octane follow-up to The Hard Stop.
Occupied City Occupied City
Documentary 2023 251 mins Director: Steve McQueen
Steve McQueen’s cinematic commemoration of the Holocaust offers a multidimensional experience full of gravity and sublimity.