"The point is, Mike, that it all depends on how you look at it."
Swingers is the quintessential guy movie. Not to say that a woman won't enjoy it, or that it's a stereotypical collection of all the things that men are supposed to love in movies, like a non-stop testosterone-fueled orgy of naked women, explosions, and violence.
Nope, Swingers is the quintessential guy movie because almost every guy can relate to at least part of it at some time during his life. The uncertainty about your career, the lingering pain of losing a girlfriend you truly loved, the camaraderie (and annoyances) of your friends, the frustrating world of dating and the games and "rules" that come along with it, and the feeling of that moment when you finally realize that your life can go on without that other person it revolved around so long.
The story focuses on Mike (Jon Favreau),an aspiring comedian in Los Angeles who has recently gone through a break-up with his long-term girlfriend back east, and his group of friends. Most of whom try to help Mike get over his break-up by meeting women in and around L.A. and Las Vegas. Especially his two best friends, ladies man Trent (Vince Vaughn) and Rob (Ron Livingston) Most of the movie follows the group on their nightly romps through the city, or Mike as he struggles with the loss of the relationship that he was very much invested in.
I enjoyed the casual conversations the guys had about women, video games, their job efforts, and other things. Swingers really nailed the dynamics of how guys act with each other.
It's also pretty funny, though it's not a total comedy by any means. A lot of the humor derives from Mike's painful attempts to talk to women, after six long years off the market. There's a really hysterical sequence about Mike and a woman's answering machine later in the movie that will have you howling.
I got the sense that Swingers is the kind of movie that holds up well after repeated viewings, and maybe even gets better. It's not amazing, or anything like that, but it is hard to imagine anyone (especially guys aged 20-29) not appreciating it.
Swingers
1996
Action / Comedy / Drama
Swingers
1996
Action / Comedy / Drama
Plot summary
This is a story about Mike, a guy who left his girl in New York when he came to LA to be a star. It's been six months since his girlfriend left him and he's not doing so good. So, his pal and some other friends try and get him back in the social scene and forget about his 6 year relationship.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
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Definitely worth checking out.
"You're so money and you don't even know it."
Every time the characters called each other 'Money' I had to cringe. The context never worked for me even though I knew what they were trying to say. The main story here is Mike (Jon Favreau) and Trent (Vince Vaughn),and some of their situations were ridiculous, but probably not enough to write home about. The scene where they meet up with Christy (Deena Martin) and Lisa (Katherine Kendall) should have sent the girls packing, I couldn't understand how they wound up back at the girls' trailer. You know Vaughn's character doesn't believe a word he's saying which makes his statements funny, but I don't know how the girls didn't see right through him. Mike on the other hand is so lacking in self confidence and wallowing in such misery over a broken relationship that he can't move on with his life. I guess a guy can relate to both characters during a similar period in one's life, and in fact, their dialog is probably more realistic than one would care to admit. My favorite scene would have been the six phone calls in a row with Mike stepping all over himself until he gets the 'Don't call me ever again' response. When Mike broke out of his funk with that swing number by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, you just had to know his troubles were over. At that point, he was so money he didn't even know it.
Memorable character
Mike (Jon Favreau) is suffering from the end of his six year relationship. He obsessively waits for her phone call as he tries to make it as a comedian. His friend Rob (Ron Livingston) from back east is struggling to get into acting. Trent (Vince Vaughn) is his talkative friend with the infamous words "Vegas Baby". The gang of friends try to pick up Babies and convince Mike that he's Money.
Vince Vaughn is giving a way over the top performance. Jon Favreau's character is a little sad and pathetic. Their combo is amusing until it becomes annoying. What sold me is the scene with the phone calls. The first three calls are amusing. Then the movie goes for broke and gets to another level. There is pathetic and then there is really funny pathetic. As a writer, Jon has created a memorable character with Vince. It's the second movie for director Doug Liman and pulls it all together.