Nyad (2023) Review

Diana Nyad an athelte who at the age of 60 is not willing to give up on her life-long dream of completing a 110 mile open ocean swim from Cuba to Florida, with the help and support from her best friend and coach Bonnie Stoll.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Diana Nyad had been working as a sports journlist following her retirement from swimming, she had gone through a lot in the sport and had attempted the distance style swimming and this rather impossible task of the 110 miles from Cuba to Florida in her younger years. Depsite then being 60 she wants to still acheive it and sets out to training again, given her advancing years that part alone was never going to be easy!

The thing about this challenge was that it was also without using a shark cage, along with other rule and regulations it is what seems a totally crazy task. I have ran ten marathons which I know most people find crazy, and know people who do 110 mile runs yet the fact of being in the water and swimming in truly crazy conditions is on another level crazy.

Her first attempt at this was at the age of 28, so attempting to do this again now in her 60s was a rather crazy thing to do. Especially when she had her last competitve swim on her 30th birthday completing and setting a world recrod from Bahamas to Florida. With the fact that this had been made into a film, kinda already states that she will achieve the challenge and it took four more attempts to do it.

I found the scenes of Nyad being in the water to really take your breath away and it made for a thrilling watch. Mainly because I have never been a strong swimmer even in a pool, oh and to add that I actually got stung by a jellyfish this summer in the sea so that scene was like OMG as well. Throwing in flashbacks to her childhood and the sexual abuse she suffered from one of her first coaches, which was certainly a factor in her mental strength of wanting to succeed in the water.

Annette Bening felt perfect casting for this role, she is certainly an actress who has always picked her roles carefully and this was really a very interesting journey. Then you have Jodie Foster alongside her and they are given some wonderful scenes, making it a very enjoyable film. Rhys Ifans in a supporting role added some comedy which was a lovely balance.