Pools, 2025.
Written and Directed by Sam Hayes.
Starring Odessa A’zion, Ariel Winter, Mason Gooding, Michael Vlamis, Francesca Noel, Tyler Alvarez, Suzanne Cryer, Stan Adams, Lucinda Johnston, Kyle Anderson, Israel Idonije, and Joe Angelo Menconi.
SYNOPSIS:
In the midst of her whole life falling apart, Kennedy attempts to somehow reconnect with her dead father, searching for permission to live her own life within a wild pool-hopping escape through the elaborate estates of her college town.
Not only is college student Kennedy (Odessa A’zion) in a depressive, grieving funk over the loss of her father, which has emotionally drained her of a social life and the willingness to attend class, but she also has to contend with the sweltering Chicago summer heat. With occasional narration from writer/director Sam Hayes waxing philosophically about the setting, Pools is both a story about personal growth in the darkest of mental states, contrasted with an upbeat affection for all things Chicago (the film is set in Lake Forest), managing even to work a couple of Mike Ditka Bears jokes.
It’s an odd combination, but also endearing, seeing Chicago and its hot weather play a pivotal part in a story. Naturally, to escape that heat, one jumps into a pool. For the rebellious Kennedy, that poses a bit of a challenge and comes with some opportunity, rounding up a small group of peers to take a Lake Forest neighborhood tour, pool hopping, avoiding being seen, and whatever legal trouble that would entail.
Those along for the drunken swimming odyssey include college roommate Delaney (Ariel Winter), who sees this as a chance to repair the fractured friendship as a result of Kennedy isolating herself from everyone in her grieving. She also ropes in the nerdy Blake (Tyler Alvarez), who wants to be her friend and believes that stepping away from books for a night and experiencing something fun for once could be good for him. Then there is the beefy Reed (Mason Gooding), eager to show others that he is not another dumb jock, especially Delaney, whom he has a crush on. Rounding out the group is Shane (Francesca Noel), who thinks Kennedy is strange, but tags along because she likes Reed. If that wasn’t enough, the film also follows the day of AC repairman Michael (Michael Vlamis), crossing paths with these characters in ways that won’t be spoiled.
And while the swimming scenes are serenely shot by cinematographer Ben Hardwicke (especially when underwater), it’s representative of something more entirely for Kennedy: for one, it’s about a sense of freedom in a world demanding much from her under sad circumstances, but it takes on more meaning the more that is learned about her. Kennedy is also about to be expelled if she doesn’t show up to class the next day (her piled-up absences have become that troubling), lending the night a coming-of-age youthful importance that it is the end of wasting away and being a self-described screwup.
What’s frustrating is that roughly 30 minutes into the film, Sam Hayes has run out of ways to mine the concept for material. This means that the group makes their way into one of the extravagant homes (they learn that the owners are on vacation), with that hangout story losing its specificity and transitioning into something familiar about these characters and their relationships, while also overestimating how much viewers might care about anyone other than Kennedy. And although Michael is a key character in the third act, it’s a stretch to say that the film needs to break away from the free-spirited party atmosphere between Kennedy and company to focus on his crummy day. Without that, everything about the third act would still work and come across as believable due to the story’s themes and performances.
That’s without mentioning that some of the humor in the first act is cringe-inducing, whether it be a principal ogling an attractive man causing her to misspeak suggestively about her desires over the phone with Kennedy, or numerous crash zooms that, while technically impressive, add a layer of quirk that doesn’t necessarily fit the story. On some level, Sam Hayes likely knows this, considering that style is mostly abandoned once the pool-partying starts. The film also strains quite a bit of credulity that these characters would get away with breaking and entering in a modern age where wealthy homeowners such as this would have security cameras or ring camera footage (Weapons showed us that a few weeks ago), but the sincerity behind the overall storytelling is enough to overlook it.
In what eventually morphs into a movie about dealing with grief and pursuing artistic passions over unfulfilling routine, Odessa A’zion keeps Pools afloat. At times, the film feels better suited to be a short, but there’s also just enough solid character work here while tapping into its setting to keep it from overstaying its welcome.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder
