A pool of love and laughter, 50 Metres is Yomna Khattab’s first film, about her father, who inspired her to become a filmmaker. But it is also an emotionally layered contemplation about their relationship, motherhood, growing old and the fear of loneliness.
The film could easily have become a navel-gazing document of the filmmaker’s irrational fears, anxieties and her somewhat complicated relationship with her father. But a clever choice of format and her dad’s refusal to act as therapist turn it into a delightful and witty observation of life.
From the first moments, it is clear that this is no ordinary portrait of a filmmaker’s father. He’s sitting at a table with his peers, listening to their birthday songs. Then, from behind the camera, Yomna asks him how he feels about the surprise, and he immediately spoils the scene by revealing that his birthday is not until two days later, and that she actually arranged it for the film.
From that moment on, we’re watching a documentary about making a documentary. And it is not just a film about Yomna’s father, but very much about herself, her worries and her relationship with her him. There’s a lot of self-reflection on her part; when she’s talking to her father, or rather interrogating him, or when she’s filming herself working on her voice-over or watching footage she’s shot.
She’s not afraid of exposing herself as an overthinker, or of being exposed as one by her father in one of the many candid conversations she has with him. He counters all her fears and worries, about growing older, about motherhood, about loneliness, with humour and perspective. When she suggests in voice-over that she talks about her panic attacks, he suggests not calling it panic but worry, turning a serious discussion into a light-hearted and loving exchange.
The lightness is also provided by the group of men surrounding her father; family and friends who are part of the swimming team and meet each other on a regular basis at the 50-meter pool for their aerobic exercises and laps. It keeps them healthy both physically and mentally. The film is not indulging in deep metaphor, although you could perceive the pool as a place of love in which this group of people submerges itself. The shots taken inside the pool and even under water breathe tranquility and contemplation. The water supports and caresses the old bodies and hides their flaws and imperfections.
But it is mostly a place of fun and togetherness, where people can just relax and forget or talk lightly about everyday struggles. The love Yomna clearly has for her father and his peers shows in the way she talks to them, bosses them around but also asks for their opinion and appreciation. Not too far from the end, she shows them a rough-cut of the material, which is met with very frank comments: some feel her part in the film is too big and that they look way older on screen that they do in reality.
As well as the pool footage, the film is made up of many home videos shot by her father. They explain both the loving and honest relationship between them and her fear of not living up to his expectations. But most of all, they show the value of documenting family and other loved ones – as a constant reminder of what really matters in this life.
Egypt, 72 minutes, 2025
Writer/director Yomna Khattab
Producers Ahmed Amer, Patricia Drati
Camera Omar Hossam Aly, Ahmed Salah El Rawy, Badrkhan Ali, Nadine Sameh, Ziad El Samahy
Editor Gladys Joujou, Kaled Moeit
Composer Jonas Colstrup
Sound Design Jakob Garfield-Haysteen
