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Candice (Shawn Pelofsky) is diagnosed with cancer, which of course is a
bummer, but not so much so that she doesn't inspire her ultrasound tech
Natalie (Jensen Jacobs) to make something out of her life other than being
that ultrasound tech in her windowless lab ... and since Candice is
running a triathlon organisation, Natalie, who has never finished anything
in her life, actually signs up for a triathlon (not an Ironman thing,
something more civil but still trying for a beginner), and somehow she
manages to rope her best friend Skyler (Walker Hays) in to train with her.
At the group they're training (and running) with, they meet all sorts of
people, like Zeus (Kenneth Simmons), the former wrestler who's
participating in this to overcome the death of his wife and is like a
mentor to all the others, Scott (Chris Dyer), whom Skyler immediately
falls for, and who's doing this for the sake of his sister Christy (Kelly
Spitko), a former top-triathlete who has been thrown out of the loop due
to cancer treatment and now wants to get back in without even being sure
she can finish one tournament. And not only our heroines, all characters
experience their setbacks - but which of them will be strong enough to
fight through them? Watching a triathlon, have you ever asked
yourself who are those crazy people (and I'm not talking about the top
competitors here) who participate, only to then reach the finish line
(maybe even almost) in a most pitiful state, like on all fours or barely
able to walk or the like? Well, I'll be totally honest here, I did ...
and I think this movie here, while by no means trying let alone claiming
to be a documentary, gives a good answer to that still, not so much just
for the question who are they but lso what drives them. And thus, it
doesn't focus on top athletes (like most sport movies do) or on fallen
stars (well, there's one in there) but on regular people who know they
can't win more than a flower pot (Austrian saying), no matter how hard
they try ... but they do. And even if the movie's not without its
tearjerking moments, it's not a tearjerker per se and succeeds to bring
its point across, thanks to a subtle screenplay, a directorial effort that
stays away from creating undisputable heroes, and an ensemble cast that
above all else feels true. Definitely worth a watch, even if (or
especially if) you wouldn't even dream about ever participating in a
triathlon.
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