"Nyad" is yet another inspirational, true-life story, this time about how champion long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad reached the age of sixty and decided she wanted to fulfill her lifelong ambition of swimming from Cuba to Florida, something she attempted in her late twenties but failed at and it's distinguished, not so much by its story, exciting as it is, but by a terrific performance by Annette Bening in the title role. Indeed Bening is so good she lifts the movie out of the realms of the merely conventional bio-pic.
Co-directors Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi just seem to have sat back and allowed Bening loose on the material. Perhaps not knowing anything about Diana Nyad helped me to appreciate the handling better. There is a good script by Julia Cox, fine supporting performances from Jodie Foster and Rhys Ifans and it's beautifully photographed by Claudio Miranda and while it may not break any new ground on its own level it really is rather good.
Co-directors Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi just seem to have sat back and allowed Bening loose on the material. Perhaps not knowing anything about Diana Nyad helped me to appreciate the handling better. There is a good script by Julia Cox, fine supporting performances from Jodie Foster and Rhys Ifans and it's beautifully photographed by Claudio Miranda and while it may not break any new ground on its own level it really is rather good.