Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Swimming With Sharks
Frank Whaley plays Guy, an up-and-coming film maker in Hollywood. First he has to get into the business from the ground up and takes on a lowly job as a gopher to executive producer Buddy Ackerman, played by Kevin Spacey. Unfortunately Ackerman is just about the biggest jerk a person could ever have for a boss. He is unreasonably demanding, arrogant, and enjoys dehumanizing people. He has a string of bimbos (his word) that he schedules to meet his demands. Guy puts up with the verbal abuse, the insults, the lack of appreciation, believing it will get him somewhere. But one day, his boss starts messing around with his girl and something snaps. He sets out to take his revenge against his boss for all the humiliation he has suffered at his hands.
--BethG, Resident Scholar
This film is about the coming of age for a young college graduate who naively enters his first job believing that life is fair and that hard work is the key to success. However, through a series of brutally honest and demeaning interactions (of the course of his first year) with his immediate superior (played by Kevin Spacey) the lad learns the harsh realities about his business and what it really takes to survive.
--Scott, Resident Scholar
Guy (Frank Whaley), a young and naive Hollywood executive with hopes of becoming a writer, hires on as assistant to big-time producer Buddy Ackerman (Spacey), who turns out to be abusive, capricious, and utterly nasty. Young director Dawn Lockard (Michelle Forbes) catches Guy's eye as she tries to get Ackerman to clear her film proposal, and he becomes involved with her as his boss pushes him to the brink of brutal retaliation. A hilarious but at times shocking movie (1994, 101 minutes).
--David Loftus, Resident Scholar
A producer hires an assistant, who would like to become a writer some day, but has to endure horrible verbal abuse by his boss daily. So he decides to take revenge on his boss and give him a taste of his own medicine.
--Diane, Resident Scholar
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Analysis of Swimming With Sharks
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1980's-1999
Getting ahead in:
- entertainment world
Job/Profession/Poverty Story?
Yes
Job:
- filmmaker/producer
Training/apprentice story
Yes
Abuse on the job story?
Yes
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- writer
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Events of movie makes character more...
- aggressive
- irritated
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor?
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Female
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
How much in movie?
- 40%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- producer/director
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 80%
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average
Ethnicity/Nationality
- White (American)
How sensitive is this character?
- mean, arrogant
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- California
City?
Yes
City:
- Los Angeles
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- explicit references to torture
Movie makes you feel...
- thoughtful
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- sex under blankets
Any profanity?
- A lot of foul language
