Divided over the fate of their rundown pool, the Osgood family is visited by a nocturnal stranger who convinces them to take one last plunge.
Project Links
Review by Victoria Angelique:
Summer used to be the time of family bonding, something that seems to be a distant memory in THE CURRENT STATE OF THE BACKYARD POOL INDUSTRY. The premise is simple at first, a dad is discussing with a pool repairman about the cost to repair the pool liner and it is expensive. His children only care about their phones and his wife mentions that he only ever puts his suit on, but never actually enters the pool, so it would be a waste of money. That’s when the fun begins, and the con from the repair company.
Enter Willy, a man that claims to the manifestation of why pools are cool and should remain a staple of the backyard. He quickly shows this family who they used to be and the fun they used to have together, taking everyone back in time to when summer was simple. The film takes the audience back to their own childhoods through watching the pool games being played where the only one missing was Marco Polo. The family bonded again, to the point that the two teenage children ended up falling asleep in their parents bed as their dad continued to play in the pool with Willy.
The unexpected twist is the con from the repair company. Willy seems like a figment of someone’s imagination with his fun costume and antics. He disappears just as quickly when the dad wakes up, making the audience think it was all a dream, until the repairman talks to Willy in the backseat of the company van as they plan their next con to get the next customers to commit. It’s a very unexpected business strategy that no one would ever expect.
Families are strengthened again, as shown when this particular family is no longer on their phones but jumping back in the pool as the film ends.
Festival Reviews 