Nyad – 6.5

Recommended mainly for the performance by Annette Bening (so much better than Emma Stone’s), who created a character that neatly meshed with the archival footage of the eponymous marathon swimmer. The story of inhuman endurance was catnip for directors Chin/Vasarhelyi, after Meru, Free Solo and Rescue. Their problem here is that swimming from Cuba to Key West is neither as photogenic or dramatic as mountain climbing, and when the story requires them to show the same thing four times it verges on boring. The moments of drama (e.g., shark attack) were trite and predictable, but through it all Bening was a force and a character to cheer for.