Swimming Movie ~ Pride

We got to see Pride this weekend too! Very cool movie (and according to Chris, they did a good job of nailing Jim Ellis' character!) I highly recommend it and they did a really decent job with the swim sequences, too. Though it was interesting that the climactic 400 free relay started out with the first swimmers all diving in and doing the start of a breaststroke pullout...

Though it was interesting that the climactic 400 free relay started out with the first swimmers all diving in and doing the start of a breaststroke pullout... Bahahahaha gotta love Hollywood.

Well, it is freestyle. :laugh2: I haven't been able to see it yet. Our theatre here chose not to carry it yet. Who knows when. It's great to live in the boonies! Though it was interesting that the climactic 400 free relay started out with the first swimmers all diving in and doing the start of a breaststroke pullout...

Anyone who thinks backstroke is boring to watch hasn't a clue as to what it takes to actually swim it: 6 beat kick and terrific timing are two that come to mind. And, not being able to see where you are going, only where you have been takes very special people indeed!! Fearless people I might add. donna They have the mens NCAA 200 medley relay posted on YouTube...and the lead off backstroker went 20.5. This relay had to be one of the most exciting events of the meet. But back to the breaststroke pullout on the freestyle relay...They should have had some fact checkers to ensure an accurate portrayal of the sport. Maybe only the swimming audience will catch that blunder.

Yeah, Sheswims, that's great. I'm glad to hear this movie is having a positive effect on the sport!

The movie came and went too fast in Tucson for me to see it, and I finally got around to watching it this weekend. Yes, I know Jim Ellis very well -- or did, in my younger years -- but I didn't know a whole lot about that first year in Philly, so I didn't have the truth to compare to the movie. That said, it hit all the sport movie cliches. Whether or not the team stood on the blocks one by one and said "This is our house, coach!" when the other team "forfeited," or whether or not a girl could actually swim in boys races in 1974 is not the point. Many of the moments were not new to the movie, even though the sport was different. I think they really did fudge a lot of swimming facts, but as we all said, the regular public will not know. Streamlines were not popular in the 1970s. Watch any clip of the 1976 Olympics for proof. And I wanted to believe that these swimmers could transform from floundering swimmers to be able to do what they did in the end in a space of a year, but I couldn't buy that. I've been in this sport for many years, and I've never, ever heard of a group of kids who had that kind of turnaround. But, again, that actually might have happened. I don't think Jim Ellis would have approved telling that part of the story if the bulk of it wasn't true. It did make me proud, however, to see that the community supported the team, even driving to Baltimore for the final meet. That was the most touching thing in the whole movie.

May I be the first to say congratulations on all of your achievements. We never know when inspiration may strike. Keep on swimming. Cheers.

The movie changed my life. It helped me find the buried athlete that I had forgotten. Although I did not come from the inner city, my experiences swimming as a youth in OH were similiar. The movie inspired me to begin swimming after YEARS of inactivity.....I saw the movie in March and have since lost 50 lbs, competed in 2 triathlons this summer (for the first time in my life) and was a motivator to start a masters program in Chicago with other african american swimmers. This movie is not meant for everyone but will touch a few who look beyond the mechanics of the film and are open to the meaning and insight it shares. Every young athlete should see it ......

Uh, oh. Another Longhorn has invaded the forums, as evidenced by the fact that he/she knows my former college nickname. Watch out, guys. We're everywhere! Ande said you some of you even made it into another swimming movie... "The Guardian"

Uh, oh. Another Longhorn has invaded the forums, as evidenced by the fact that he/she knows my former college nickname. Watch out, guys. We're everywhere!