NYAD, as in Diana Nyad, competitive swimming legend, a latter-day Amazon suited with enough goal-targeted drive for an invasion fleet and buoyed by an ego the size of the Gulf of Mexico. Co-directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, the predictable but forceful screenplay was written by Julia Cox, who adapted Nyad’s book “Find A Way”. While the movie plays hide & seek with facts (like zillions of ‘true story’s) what is indisputable is that the 2023 entry gave Annette Bening a role to kill for and provided another nice one for Jodie Foster in the bargain.

“Well, of course you’re entitled to your opinion, but I can’t begin to tell you how incredibly wrong and shortsighted it is.”

Thirty years after unsuccessfully attempting it, in 2010 62-year old Diana Nyad (Bening, 64) sets out to swim from Cuba to Florida. 110 miles. Nonstop. With her best friend Bonnie Stoll (Foster, 50) as trainer and John Bartlett (Rhys Ifans) navigating the escort boat, Nyad makes five attempts over a two-year period, enduring debilitating stings from box jellyfish, danger from weather and sharks, exhaustion and hallucinations, and dissension from her exasperated crew. Limits of many sorts are pushed to the extreme.

“Just because we are on a one way street hurtling to death doesn’t mean we have to succumb to mediocrity.“

Excellently directed, it’s a compelling saga of ‘The Human Spirit’ variety, somewhat hamstrung by the central character not being the most charming fish in the bowl. One’s left with appreciation for prowess, determination and grit but questioning the relative importance and the ‘real meaning’ of such self-centered feats of daring from obsessed, pampered and get-the-hell-out-of-my-way types. As with ‘respect’ v. ‘approve’ ‘impressed’ v. ‘caring’ don’t always kiss & makeup.

Which is not to slight the skillful film-making in this instance, and not at all to take away from lauding the performers. Ifans scores as the no-nonsense skipper, and Foster (has she ever given a less-than-committed performance?) is strong as the sort of best friend you’re lucky to have. But, as with the story, the movie belongs to Bening, who brings fierce intelligence, burning wit, daunting focus and bravura physicality to inhabiting the prickly Diana. Both she and Foster drew Oscar nominations (Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress) and were it in a year that didn’t include Emma Stone’s brilliant dissolve-emerge in Poor Things, it’s likely Bening would have walked on stage to applause. She’s terrific. Ask Warren.

Released in select theaters so as to qualify for awards, it only tagged 227th at the box office, and was shown then via streaming.

Location shot in the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Florida (Key West) but for obvious safety and simplicity reasons nearly all the water scenes were done with CGI and in a studio tank. You won’t be able to tell. A strong assist comes from Alexandre Desplat’s quietly propulsive score.

With Luke Cosgrove, Eric T. Miller, Anna Harriet Pitman (Diana at 14), Kathy Rosenberg and Jeena Yi. 120 minutes.

* Historical hysteria on lane 4—Giving the immersive experience a cramp is the barnacle-encrusted anchor drag of fact-fudging from the script—and Nyad’s numerous caught-in-fibs escapades—that keelhaul accepting the ‘true story’ as gospel. Lap it up, but be careful when swallowing seewater.