I liked all three main characters in this simultaneously lightly drawn but very serious and dramatic film... As Paul, Fiennes is, well, fine as the main character (who's determined to swim the Hudson river, for a very special and somewhat scary reason). His two friends, who accompany Paul in a "safety boat" are also very well cast and the three have an instant chemistry, and a finely woven narrative that makes it seem as if they might have known each other for years. Justin Kirk ("weeds") provides the character Jeff, the perfect light touch to our very serious protagonist. Jeff is smart, pragmatic, caring, and sensible and we find him doing many of the things we ourselves would be doing in a similar situation - but ultimately we never find out if any of it works. Elisabeth Reaser (the "Twilight" series) as Liz, also provides the perfect counterpoint to Jeff's light character by seemingly matching Paul's, really very serious dilemma with all the concern any friend would be feeling. Even though Paul's in a self-created situation, neither friend attempts to seriously talk him out of feeling as he does, but they seem to do their best to make life as inviting as possible while they are with him - especially Liz, who goes the extra mile to help Paul and hopefully make him see the light..By the end of the film, the characters are ready to see a conclusion, and so are we - we've toughed it out for over 90 minutes watching the dynamic and we are anxious to see some sort of pay-off with Paul, good or bad. But the failure of this movie is the ambivalent ending. The fundamental question of the story - will Paul really kill himself? Is posed in practically every scene and is an essential, perhaps the ONLY point of the story. Yet, it's never answered. I feel the ending was a mistake and should have been handled differently... we, the viewer, ultimately feel cheated out of our conclusion to the story, and the ending makes us feel baffled, perplexed, confused and even a little duped.

This was one of the worst films I've ever seen. Joseph Fiennes must have studied old James Dean movies before making this one, because all he ever did was look constipated, while wearing a perpetual frown on his face. Apparently, writer/director Peter Callahan must not be a believer in continuity or research. The "Big Swim" of the Hudson River is supposed to start just below Troy and end up at the Verazzano-Narrows Bridge, but guess what? The scenes move down the river, up the river, down the river, up the river, without the slightest attention to the proposed progression of the swim. At one point, when Fiennes character, Paul, has announced that he expects to finish the following day, the three-person party is approached by a sheriff's boat with two officers in it from Albany, who tell them that they've got 90 more miles to go to reach the bridge. My wife and I laughed aloud at the stupidity. Mary Tyler Moore must be desperate for work to have taken the idiotic role of the judgmental mother of Elizabeth Reaser's character. In one scene, Ms. Moore "pretends" to be driving a car while holding a drink, and never once looks at the road, as she spews venomous remarks about her various neighbors. The only bright spot for us was the performance of Justin Kirk as Jeff, a bartender turned swimming coach. Despite the pathetic script, he still maintained a level of professionalism and delivered his lines with conviction. Okay the music was decent, too. So, there you have it: a ridiculous plot, amateurish script, even more amateurish directing and editing, for a complete waste of time.

Very moving. Everything about this movie worked for me. Top-notch acting. Great dialogue. Fantastic cinematography. I don't get all the wannabe critics, ready to call out directors, using terms like "heavy handed," "pretentious," etc. This was a compelling story, and any departures from the main story were there to add humanity. Everyone involved should be very proud. They made a movie that was different, and worth our time. (mine, anyway) The ending left no doubt in my mind what happened. I didn't find any ambiguity whatsoever. I felt it was moving, and insightful. I think people need to open up to those films that are a little different. This is one such film.

This under-the-radar film about a guy who swims a good length of the Hudson River in NY State down to NYC, is one of those warm indie films that deftly balances drama with some humor. No surprise that it snagged actors like Joseph Fiennes, Elizabeth Reaser (adding another fine performance to her growing career since her debut in the great "SWEET LAND"), Justin Kirk, Michelle Trachtenberg, and Mary Tyler Moore in a notable supporting role.The reason behind his swim I won't divulge here, but it makes for some powerful moments. As he swims, his 2 friends go along with him in a guide boat, and they come to shore for breaks, which leads to some great moments in the film. It's not all on the water. But when it is, it's riveting. As a viewer, I felt like I was swimming right there with him at times.And the swimming scenes show off the wonderful Hudson Valley, and Joseph Fiennes looks like he really...um...took the plunge. That's really him in the water. Kudos to the filmmakers who must've been on the river an awful lot. (And to the camera people!) Hopefully this film finds its audience in other film festivals and in a future release.