connections betwween this film and 'the swimmer'.

both this film and 'the swimmer' deal with the end of the american dream, both are beautifully shot and feature icons (i hate the overuse of this term but Douglas and Burt Lancaster both qualify for this term). while in my opinion 'the swimmer' is the far supieror film, the reason being the Douglas film is let down by a "spotiness" that swings between ridiculousness and occasional flashes of sublime brilliance, but there again it is a suitable interior landscape for whats going on inside Douglas' head. perhaps on a human level the selfishness of the Douglas character helps to make 'the swimmer' a finer film when we see Lancaster unravelling in a more subtle, disturbing and pitiful way. both films remain as tantalizing zeitgeists of their time.