Light in the Water (Lis Bartlett, 2018) USA

Reviewed by Ky Biswell at the Santa Barbara film festival 2019.

Light in the Water, Directed by Lis Bartlett is a mesmerizing tale of an outcaste group of people swimming for their rights and their lives. The gay community in West Hollywood created a team of swimmers that crushed records and become known and sought after around the globe.  During the events that shaped them, trying to keep their heads above water in the flurry of the 80′ s, they were pioneering a movement through the avenue of their world known as swim.

Taken on a tour that starts about forty years ago, we watch the team develop from its conception to the present day, it continues to thrive and still exists today. Unintentionally collecting members from all different corners through their open minds and positive attitudes, they attracted people both as prospective team mates and spectators.  We begin to get a feel for this family as they reach new heights unafraid of being who they are, they blow away anyone watching every time. The team faced a number of challenges, the aids epidemic swept through West Hollywood around this time and the backlash of protesters nearly consumed them.

This documentary searches through memorabilia in the form of old videos, pictures, and reminiscing members that both capture and paint a timeline helping us along as we travel with them. Crafted with elegance and extremely well rounded, though it may be impossible, it seems as if Bartlett left no stone unturned. This documentary didn’t just tell a wonderful story but truly showed up in every aspect of the project. The effortlessness in understanding for the viewer experience truly does justice to the story that unfolds.

Perseverance coupled devastations define this West Hollywood swim team as it exemplifies the strength it takes to get back up over and over again. What it means to create community that can’t be broken by anything, a recommendation for anyone trying to carve their own path or want to learn a piece of history that until now was tucked away.