‘Swiped’ Insider Movie Review
A truly underwhelming film. A bore fest which offers nothing new or of value to the audience.
While there is nothing wrong in writing, directing and producing your own film — after all, a lot of great filmmakers do this, it is important to know if you have the skill sets to excel in all of these areas of filmmaking.
The 2018 coming of age romantic comedy film, Swiped which was written, produced, directed and executive produced by Ann Deborah Fishman and distributed by Netflix and iTunes is a record setter in mediocrity.
Now… I try as much as possible not to be overcritical in reviewing any work of art, because a lot of great intentions would definitely have gone into it, as no one ever set out to make a bad film. However, this particular film doesn’t help itself in any way, and you would be seeing the reasons for this below.
Breaking it all down
I’ll be completely honest …
There are very few redeeming qualities of Swiped.
Swiped tells the story of James, a College student played by Kendall Sanders who is enlisted by his friend and classmate, Lance, a character played by Noah Centineo to help in developing a hookup app which would be used to match people across the campus. This looks like a simple story, doesn’t it?
Yet, the filmmakers in charge still managed to complicate and mess this story up in such a way that you would definitely think this was a film school fresher trying to make a film off Christopher Nolan’s Inception screenplay.
To start with, the acting in this film was super poor, definitely one of the worst I have ever seen, and there was no on screen chemistry and understanding between the actors. At some point, you have to stop and ask yourself, was there ever a reading before principal photography began? Was the director available on set, and did she actually pass that for an acceptable performance?
It is also safe to say that some of the messages passed by the movie are unrealistic and borderline stereotypical. For instance, it seems as if all the college girls in this film are just going about looking for love.
For a film directed by a woman, this film also doesn’t show the true position of the modern women in a relationship. It seems as if we are watching some ladies who went to College in 1964, which is a headscratcher given the times we are in.
Also, the film seems to sell the narrative that guys may not want commitment and they would prefer going around looking for ladies to get down with and move on. This can be seen in one of the most popular lines in the film,
“The world is full of women and I intend on sleeping with at least 100 of them before I date someone” — Lance
While this may be true in some cases, it is not always so for everyone.
Lastly, there is no film without any form of positives, at least in my own book, and it’s safe to say there are a couple of positives in Swiped. First, the cinematography while not being world class is good enough for a film of this stature.
Also, we can’t deny the fact that technology has had a huge impact in the way the lives of the current generation of youths are shaped, and this was clearly shown in this film, even if it wasn’t perfectly portrayed. At least, these are some positives to take away from the film.
Essential Movie Details
By the way… did you know?
- Swiped is a “coming of age” romantic comedy.
- Swiped was distributed by streaming giants, Netflix and iTunes.
- This film was directed by the mighty talented Ann Deborah Fishman who also serves as the writer, producer and executive producer of the film.
- Starring in the film are Noah Centineo (How to Build a Better Boy), and Kristen Angela Johnson (3rd Rock from the Sun).
In The End
Although Swiped have a few positives, they are not enough to redeem this film in any way. This film is stereotypical, boring, unrealistic and unimaginative.
If the director of this film still desires to make some films in the future, she needs to go back and learn the basic tenets of filmmaking, because this wasn’t anywhere good enough and it shows clearly that there is a great deficiency in writing, directing and technical know-how.
For movie lovers who like the premise of Swiped, there are some other similar and better films which you might find interesting. You can check out, ‘Sixteen Candles’, ‘The Perfect Date’ or ‘10 Things I hate About You’.
Where to Watch
Ready to watch Swiped online free after our IMDB, Wiki & Rotten Tomatoes style movie review? Well, instead of hitting up Netflix, Reddit, 123movies, Prime or Putlocker for Swiped streaming, just visit us at Homestream.
You’ll get Swiped explained at Homestream. You can read Swiped quotes, scripts and reviews. You’ll see Swiped cast, release date and trailers. If you liked this article please follow us on Medium for more in-depth movie reviews!
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Ashley Mills grew up in Nevada and graduated with a degree in government from UNLV. After working at Final Cut Magazine as an editorial assistant, she became a freelance writer in California, where she eventually began to write about movies for the Arts & Leisure section of major publications.
In 2015 she became the movie critic at the a popular Northeastern newspaper, where she stayed for nearly two years before moving to Delaware to be the movie critic at a local newspaper. She left in 2019 and began working at Homestream. She writes entertainment pieces on movies, television shows and popular culture.
You can connect with Ashley on Homestream’s Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest or by visiting our website.
