Is Night Swim scary? Genre, plot, and more explored

Night Swim, which premiered in theaters on January 5, 2024, has created a buzz with its intriguing plot and eerie twists. Based on a short film of the same name by Bryce McQuire and Rod Blackhurst, the supernatural horror drama centers on a former baseball player who moves into a new house with his wife and children only to learn that the swimming pool is haunted.

According to IMDb, its synopsis reads:

"A family moves into a new home, unaware that a dark secret from the house's past will unleash a malevolent force in the backyard pool."

Night Swim is written and directed by McGuire, best known for his work on the short films Soon You Will Be Gone, Possibly Eaten, and Every House is Haunted. James Wan and Jason Blum, who previously collaborated on the Insidious film series, are its producers.

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Is Night Swim a scary movie?

Night Swim, one of the first major theatrical releases of 2024, features an inherently scary narrative about a haunted swimming pool. In an interview with Screenrant, McGuire said the film is inspired by his "overactive childhood imagination."

"It was that my overactive childhood imagination ruined pools for me, and then Marco Polo just became a casualty of me asking the question of what things inherent to the pool as a location are available to us to weaponize and ruin forever."

He further added that the film explores the fears associated with being underwater.

“There are all of the urban legends and things that we grew up hearing, like, “Don’t swim after you eat”, [and] “Don't run by the pool.” Once you decide, like, “This movie is built around the pool.”

Additionally, Bryce revealed that it took him three years to develop the film’s horror elements, as he wanted them to feel convincing on the big screen.

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Night Swim: Meet the cast

Night Swim features Wyatt Russell in the role of Ray and Kerry Condon as Eve. Russell is best known for his work on The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. He has also appeared on Black Mirror, Lodge 49, and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters. His film credits include Table 19, Shimmer Lake, and Overlord.

On the other hand, Condon rose to fame with her work on Rome and Better Call Saul. She has also appeared in Ray Donovan and Gypsy. Beyond her work on TV, she is known for her Oscar-nominated performance in The Banshees of Inisherin. Condon has also appeared in Bad Samaritan and In the Land of Saints and Sinners.

They are joined by Gavin Warren as Elliot and Amélie Hoeferle as Izzy. Warren has consolidated his standing in the industry with his appearances on shows such as Daybreak and NCIS: New Orleans. Similarly, Amélie rose to fame with her work in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.

The cast also includes:

• Jody Long as Lucy
• Nancy Lenehan as Kay
• Eddie Martinez as Coach E
• Elijah J Roberts as Ronin
• Rahnuma Panthaky as Dr. Sridhar

Meanwhile, Night Swim has received underwhelming reviews from critics. The film holds an approval rating of 22 percent on Rotten Tomatoes based on 150 reviews.

The critics' consensus reads:

"Despite a promising start and a handful of solid scares, Night Swim is undone by a premise that just isn't strong enough to support a feature-length film." Read critic reviews.

Additionally, the film has a rating of 4.9 on IMDb based on 5,088 votes.

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Night Swim was released in theaters on January 5, 2024. It is now available to rent on Vudu and Amazon Prime Video.