

The Swimmer
When you talk about "The Swimmer" will you talk about yourself?
A man spends a summer day swimming home via all the pools in his quiet suburban neighborhood.
TMDB
7.3/10
282 votes
IMDb
Not rated yet
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- Status
- Released
- Budget
- —
- Box office
- —
- Language
- English
- upper class
- midlife crisis
- connecticut
- swimming pool
- neighbor
- swimmer
- disillusionment
- based on short story
- pool party
- existential crisis
- pool-hopping
- psychological breakdown
Top billed cast













Behind the camera
Director
Writers
Music
Produced in
United Kingdom, United States of America
Where to watch
All optionsAvailability for India. Provided by JustWatch through the TMDB API.
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Release dates
United StatesUS
- PremiereNew York City, New York15 May 1968
United KingdomGB
- TheatricalLondon30 Oct 1968
- Theatrical (limited)PGRe-release5 Jul 2006
AustraliaAU
- Theatrical7 Nov 1968
AustriaAT
- Theatrical26 Dec 1968
DenmarkDK
- Theatrical19 May 1969
FinlandFI
- Theatrical9 Aug 1968
FranceFR
- TheatricalTP18 Sept 1968
GermanyDE
- Theatrical1217 Jan 1969
Hong KongHK
- Theatrical18 Dec 1968
ItalyIT
- Theatrical11 Oct 1968
JapanJP
- Theatrical6 Sept 1969
MexicoMX
- Theatrical26 Dec 1969
Frequently asked questions
The Swimmer was released on 9 August 1968.
Audience reviews
3- C7/10
CinemaSerf
6/3/2023
"Ned" (Burt Lancaster) has been away for a while so his neighbours are a bit surprised to see him, clad only in his trunks, swimming in their pool. After some chat with them, he discovers that barring the odd bit of terrain to cross, he can pretty much swim his way home through the pools of other neighbours/friends/acquaintances - a river and even a public lido... The film now follows him as this rather unique journe…
- W7/10
Wuchak
6/16/2024
**_Offbeat parable of self-discovery on the collapse of the “American dream”_** A somewhat confused man in swimming trunks (Burt Lancaster) travels from pool to pool in suburban Connecticut on his way home. Some of the people he comes across are played by Janet Landgard, Janice Rule, Joan Rivers and Diana Muldaur, amongst several others. "The Swimmer" (1968) is a semi-surreal commentary on mid-60’s America an…
- A
Abstractals
4/6/2026
Burt Lancaster referred to this film as ""**'Death of a Salesman'** in swimming trunks,"" and that's not a bad characterization. You could also think of it, in many ways, as ""**'American Beauty'** in the late 1960s."" This movie came out nine years after the original **'Twilight Zone'** series aired, and it would have made an interesting episode. As a movie, it lasts a little too long, is fairly melodramatic, a…
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