jankp's Full Review: Red Shoe Diaries - Swimming Naked
“Calgon, take me away!” may well be what you’re feeling when you dive into this classy, yet lusciously erotic, episode of Red Shoe Diaries: Swimming Naked, which was on Showtime Entertainment from 1992-1999 and now assembled on video or DVD with three stories on each. These soft porn stories, so reminiscent of sexy romance novels geared for women, will undoubtedly take you away into a hazy world of gentle dreamers and lost souls, beautiful moments and enduring memories, sensual lovers and graceful artists so achingly vulnerable to the realities of loss, betrayal, loneliness, fear and confusion. The stories indeed are letters from ladies answering an ad from “Red Shoes” that asked for help in understanding betrayal and to heal his wounds from loss.
“Red Shoes” is portrayed briefly throughout by David Duchovny (X Files, Return To Me) as each letter/story is introduced. The first of these, called Swimming Naked, tells of a sweet, young woman in a small town who tends the indoor swimming pool and sneaks in to swim naked at night. A professional male swimmer has been training there and their meeting and eventual relationship is surreal like a fantasy come true for every lonely, naive girl who escapes into her diary with the secrets of her innermost being.
“To float is to fly; to fly is to dream” may be repeatedly heard from her, which serves as the theme for the next two letters/stories. The second, called Jump!, was a little more fascinating for me because the young woman discovers the overwhelming freedom and joy in parachuting from an airplane with her ‘instructor,’ never given another name though he was her lover and fiancée. This new hobby empowers her to take control of her life and ‘find herself’ apart from her ‘instructor.’
The third, The Tears, written, directed and produced by Zalman King, proved to be the most compelling story as well as gorgeously crafted. While it may be easy to understand the allure of naked swimmers and (clothed) parachutists, not everyone will appreciate the passion of ballet as glamorized in this story. I don’t watch much ballet, but I did get swept away by the flurry of artistry inherent here. The characters not only loved purely and obsessively, but also danced and leaped with their God-given souls.
George S. Clinton’s breathless soundtrack reflects perfectly the quality of showmanship from this Red Shoes Diary entry. Jazzy, charming, fresh as a snowflake, the notes sink into your subconscious deliciously to render you floating and fancy-free. Be careful that it doesn’t put you to sleep! I watched this twice to make sure it wasn’t boredom causing my mellowness, but it will probably bore anyone wanting more hardcore action.
True, there’s no Antonio like in the Strip Poker entry of Red Shoe Diaries I recently reviewed, but the men are quite attractive, dark-haired (the ‘instructor’ had brown) and sensitive, compassionate creatures. The swimmer loved to write poetry and romance his women with reciting it, although he forgot to with the pool girl (points for originality, they played backgammon!). The other two were several years older, also searching for a love they cannot grasp, as do the women. Love, so pricelessly precious, eludes these sorrowful characters ultimately, but they also win your heart with their honest feelings and struggle to understand how to live in journey.
The point of these Red Shoe Diaries seems to be one of romance and fantasy, not to tittilate one so much with the sex (I even caught sight of a red loin cloth in a fantasy swimming sequence). This slow-moving, but balanced and cinematically haunting episode works better for me because it achieves that purpose in all three stories. Perhaps it’s more healing for a battered soul like Red Shoes (Jake played by Duchovny) and so many of us viewers who simply want a chance for an escape from life...and Calgon to take them away!
Recommended:
Yes
Viewing Format: VHS Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age
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