X
- 2021
- Unrated
- MUBI
- 1 h 46 m
- 2021
- Unrated
- MUBI
- 1 h 46 m
Summary Beloved fitness influencer Sylwia (Magdalena Koleśnik) seemingly has it made: hundreds of thousands of social media followers, endorsement deals, photo spreads in magazines. But as she starts to share more and more online, the rising pressure from concerned sponsors and increasingly obsessive fans forces her to confront her deepest insec...
Directed By: Magnus von Horn
Written By: Magnus von Horn
- 2021
- Unrated
- MUBI
- 1 h 46 m
- 2021
- Unrated
- MUBI
- 1 h 46 m
Sweat
74
5.4
Summary Beloved fitness influencer Sylwia (Magdalena Koleśnik) seemingly has it made: hundreds of thousands of social media followers, endorsement deals, photo spreads in magazines. But as she starts to share more and more online, the rising pressure from concerned sponsors and increasingly obsessive fans forces her to confront her deepest insec...
Directed By: Magnus von Horn
Written By: Magnus von Horn
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 14 Critic Reviews
74
93% Positive
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
7% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 14 Critic Reviews
74
93% Positive
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
7% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
With her eerily flawless image and pathological narcissism, it would be all too easy to make Sylwia a monstrous figure of fun — yet the more circumstances turn against her, the more nuance and moral curiosity von Horn and Koleśnik find beneath her hyper-contoured surface.
The most intense look at a social media-obsessed loner since “Eighth Grade,” Swedish director Von Horn’s Polish-language feature finds its character wrestling with the nature of her popularity, until she’s forced to confront the disconnect between her public and personal existence in vivid detail.
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 10 User Ratings
5.4
40% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
40% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
20% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Mixed or Average
Based on 10 User Ratings
5.4
40% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
40% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
20% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
This is ultimately a film about sexual violence in the age of social media influencers. It highlights the artificiality of such peoples public personas and what they may have to deal with but don't share with others . Its quite thought provoking and memorable. Its perhaps a little bleak but its not choc full of gory violence or similar, thankfully, though it won't appeal to many people for understandable reasons, so be aware of the main themes when/if deciding to watch this. I thought the main character was very well portrayed by Magdalena Kolesnik. I imagine there will be many films to come about such popular 'influencers' and what they may deal with as a result of their sudden/apparent rush to fame online. The plot takes some intriguing twists and it reminded me (if slightly) of Promising Young Woman about it, although I should say that the protagonist isn't expressly out for revenge as such. Its a film that ends, if anything, perhaps surprisingly quickly at the end but I'd say its a worthy watch, that didn't feel entirely (or overly) too over the top or exploitative, so yes I'd recommend this film.
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Sometimes irony is a **** but Sweat reminded me of a real case that happened just a few weeks ago, here in my hometown in which a "fitness influencer" underwent a special treatment that would prevent her from sweating.
Incredible but true.
She died in the table due to a reaction from the anesthesia, and it all ended there for her.
She was just 23 years old.
Sweat tries to make you empathize with the situation that these people live by the line of work they have chosen, and I cannot deny the extremes that some go to for their audience, but that's precisely the heart of the matter.
Everything for them hangs in the balance, depending on a handful of likes.
Food for thought.
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Sober and empathetic, Sweat understands how social media equally harms and helps those looking for love in the modern era. Magdalena Koleśnik’s performance is bound to make any woman online feel seen.
In her first leading role, Kolesnik is as irresistible as an energy bar, exploring the Insta-queen’s shallow depths with cunning sincerity. Rather inevitably, she overshadows the rest of the pro cast.
Von Horn has crafted an impressive art film that tells a story outside of the pathological narcissism commonly associated with the world of social media influencers. Even surrounded by the alarmingly curated lifestyle, von Horn and Koleśnik together bring to life a story with more nuance, sophistication and genuine moral curiosity than we’ve seen from the genre.
Coming to a too-obvious conclusion aside, if there’s a better minimalist parable for “living online,” I’m hard pressed to think of it.
This film isn’t really sure where it’s taking us and how, or if, it wants to surprise us, and the key scene with Klaudiusz doesn’t work.
I liked the visual approach, but the film makes Sylwia look like someone or something is forcing her to be like that. I mean, it's not that they've just discovered that not everything is as it seems. Director Magnus von Horn doesn't make any judgments, but the stance proves to be very mild and not that interesting. Sylwia even says that it all could go away with just the click of a button, so why wouldn't she do it? Why make a video about how lonely you are and not take action? 'Sweat' tries to convince us that influencers are humans too, but I just couldn't connect with the "see, they have problems like you, but still get everything for free and promote stupid things people don't need."
What I really liked here is the idea of capitalism vs communism; the new way vs. the old, represented in the strained relationship between Sylwia and her mother.
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(Mauro Lanari)
The fluid identity inextricably composed of real life ("irl") and virtual ("VR")/digital one has now become our new everyday existence, so I am amazed by the hypertrophic storytelling of Polish cinematography (see also Jan Komasa's "The Hater"), its excessive fictionalization of the repercussions on social media of late adolescent problems when we are already full of true stories of influencers and spin doctors to be translated into biopics. Maybe they have no phenomena like the Ferragnez or the Casalino? I doubt it.
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Production Company
Lava Films,
Zentropa International Sweden,
Film i Väst,
Canal+ Polska,
EC1 Lódz - Miasto Kultury,
Opus Film,
DI Factory,
Polski Instytut Sztuki Filmowej,
Svenska Filminstitutet (SFI)
Release Date Jun 18, 2021
Duration 1 h 46 m
Rating Unrated
Genres
Tagline Who Needs Friends When You Have 600.000 Followers
Awards
Polish Film Festival
• 8 Wins & 9 Nominations
Polish Film Awards
• 3 Nominations
Chicago International Film Festival
• 2 Wins & 2 Nominations
