The Midnight Swim

When June's (Lindsay Burdge) mother goes mysteriously missing after diving in Spirit Lake, she and her sisters travel home to put her affairs in order. June, a mentally unstable documentary filmmaker, records the experience with her two half-sisters Annie (Jennifer Lafleur) and Isa (Aleksa Palladino). Their mother, an ecologist who was campaigning to preserve Spirit Lake, is gone but always present. As they settle back into her house, Isa takes up with June's ex-crush Josh (Ross Partridge) while several strange occurrences happen after they jokingly summon the ghost of a local legend. As the questions mount, the family begins to unravel and June finds herself drawn deeper into the true mystery of the lake.

• Lindsay Burdge as June
• Jennifer Lafleur as Annie
• Aleksa Palladino as Isa
• Beth Grant as Amelia Brooks
• Ross Partridge as Josh
• Michelle Hutchison as Realtor
• Shirley Venard as Maggie Helms
• Kaya Sakrak as Father
• Traci Dinwiddie as Mother
• Ebru Caparti as Auntie

Critical reception for The Midnight Swim was positive,{{cite web|last1=Zimmerman|first1=Samuel|title="THE MIDNIGHT SWIM" (Fantasia Movie Review)|url=http://www.fangoria.com/new/the-midnight-swim-fantasia-movie-review/|publisher=Fangoria|accessdate=10 August 2014}} with much of the film's praise centering on the performances and the "acutely unsettling" tone of the film.{{cite web|last1=Halfyard|first1=Kurt|title=Fantasia 2014 Review: THE MIDNIGHT SWIM, Where Still Waters Run Deep|url=http://twitchfilm.com/2014/07/fantasia-2014-review-in-the-midnight-swim-still-waters-run-deep.html|publisher=Twitch Film|accessdate=10 August 2014}} Indiewire praised these elements, calling the film "enigmatic and fathomless," and stating that the film "is, among other things, a movie about sisters, who actually seem like sisters. They look alike, they sound alike, they move alike enough to seem like sibs. One is a believer, one is a cynic; one is, at least on the surface, slightly unstable. They may be variations on a single genetic theme, but even their differences speak to kinship."{{cite web|last1=Anderson|first1=John|title=Fantasia Review: 'The Midnight Swim' Will Stun Your Senses|date=28 July 2014|url=http://www.indiewire.com/article/fantasia-review-the-midnight-swim-will-stun-your-senses-20140728|publisher=IndieWire|accessdate=10 August 2014}} Twitch Film and Film School Rejects also wrote positive reviews,{{cite web|last1=Halfyard|first1=Kurt|title=Fantasia 2014 Review: THE MIDNIGHT SWIM, Where Still Waters Run Deep|url=http://twitchfilm.com/2014/07/fantasia-2014-review-in-the-midnight-swim-still-waters-run-deep.html|publisher=Twitch Film|accessdate=10 August 2014}} with Film School Rejects commenting that although they saw the found footage format as a "constant distraction" the film was overall well acted and praised the film's imagery.{{cite web|last1=Hunter|first1=Rob|title='The Midnight Swim' Review Fantasia 2014: An Ethereal Unease Lessened By Distraction|url=http://filmschoolrejects.com/reviews/midnight-swim-review.php|publisher=Film School Rejects|accessdate=10 August 2014}}

Fangoria commented that the found footage format was integral to the story and something more akin to an emotional POV, stating that "the camera uniquely acts as an almost-transparent bridge between you and a character's psyche." Moveable Fest says the movie "terrifies existentially."{{cite web|last1=Saito|first1=Stephen|title=FANTASIA FEST '14 REVIEW: "MIDNIGHT SWIM" OFFERS CHILLS AND THRILLS|url=http://moveablefest.com/moveable_fest/2014/07/midnight-swim-review.html|publisher=Moveable Fest|accessdate=10 August 2014}} Ion Cinema states that "the unnerving quality of Sarah Adina Smith's directorial debut occurs mostly in its aftereffects, leaving us with the profound, less earthbound implications in its final few moments."{{cite web|last1=Bell|first1=Nicholas|title=The Midnight Swim {{!}} 2014 Fantasia Film Festival Review|url=http://www.ioncinema.com/reviews/the-midnight-swim-review|publisher=Ion Cinema|accessdate=10 August 2014}}

The film had its world premiere at the Fantasia International Film Festival on July 27, 2014.{{cite web |url=http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/224/the-midnight-swim |title=The Midnight Swim - Ztélé Presents Fantasia 2014 |website=www.fantasiafestival.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714042434/http://www.fantasiafestival.com/2014/en/films-schedule/224/the-midnight-swim |archive-date=2014-07-14}} on May 12, 2015, the film was acquired by Candy Factory Films.{{Cite web|url=http://candyfactoryfilms.com/archives/2518|title=Candy Factory Films – CANDY FACTORY ACQUIRES THE MIDNIGHT SWIM FOR GENRE ARM}} The film was released in a limited release and through video on demand on June 26, 2015.{{Cite web|url=http://www.shocktillyoudrop.com/news/380565-exclusive-poster-bewitching-must-see-midnight-swim/|title = Horror Archives| date=9 September 2023 }}

{{Reflist|2}}

• {{official website|http://themidnightswim-movie.com/}}
• {{IMDb title|3569374}}

{{Sarah Adina Smith}}

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Category:2014 films

Category:Found footage films

Category:Films about film directors and producers

Category:2014 directorial debut films

Category:2014 drama films

Category:2010s English-language films