Some things I liked some I did not.

Let's be realistic.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

The best part of "The Drowning" is the stunning photography of New England and the outstanding selection of locations of picturesque natural environments and beautifully preserved buildings from the early twentieth century. But the characters who inhabit this world were a truly nasty lot. The result was an extremely unpleasant film viewing experience.In the bonus track of the DVD, the film artists were earnest as they described their intention of exploring the dark side of human personality. The screenwriter discussed how his goal was to explore "the difference between guilt and conscience" from the perspective of a psychologist whose professional opinion resulted in institutionalizing an eleven-year-old boy.After the boy is released as a young adult, the psychologist saves the young man from drowning in a suicide attempt. The film's major thrust is on what is depicted as a highly unethical relationship of the psychologist, Tom Seymour, and the young man, Danny Miller. The relationship transcends all bounds of professional propriety between a doctor and a patient.While the filmmakers wanted to dramatize "characters on the edge," it was never entirely credible that, as a successful therapist and bestselling author, Tom Seymour would have spent a single minute as Danny's therapist, given the role that he played at a major crossroads in the patient's past. It was also not believable that Tom would not provide at least a basic background about the troubled youth to his wife, Lauren, at a time when Danny was essentially stalking her. The film's director, Bette Gordon, likens the character developments of The Drowning" to the classic novel "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." Unfortunately, the film viewer only saw the "Mr. Hyde" persona of these characters. As a result, "The Drowning" failed to offer insights into the existential issues that the filmmakers wanted to raise. In the final analysis, there really wasn't much depth to the characters. This film presented a disturbingly negative view of psychologists, who are invested with the power of making life-changing decisions on people's lives through the legal system, drink their lives away in bars, become enmeshed with their patients in an unhealthy way, and capitalize on their interactions with fragile, damaged patients in bestselling books of case studies of psychological trauma.This is clinically depressing stuff indeed!

Why on earth would the main character keep the real identity of the kid from his wife when he keeps saying he isn't his therapist? Why on earth did the Parole Officer think the kid was so special? Why on earth would he sleep with a random college student? Why on earth did they mention the teacher possibly molesting him but then nothing ever came from it? Nothing was ever delved into or explained. The therapist knew what Danny did (he admitted it to him), knew he was stalking him and his wife, yet still didn't call the police and kept trying to "help" him. And the ending...what the heck was that??

I would have hoped the therapy would have gone more like Robin Williams and Matt Damon in "Good Will Hunting," especially the more realistic directness Williams displayed, even to the point of saying, "If you disrespect (me) ever again, I will end you." Instead we get a wishy-washy, I-don't-know-how-to-judge this situation liberal who knows not how to judge good from evil and twists their definitions in his mind endlessly. Of course, this leads to the very predictable character flaws and vices at work, away from work, and at home.They never connected, the patient and therapist, yet the viewer is led to think it might take place. With the complete absence of obedience in the patient, why should everything be judged by the patient's non-stop family dysfunction. Either a person really wants help or he doesn't.It's empty therapy. The "help" is ever learning, yet never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.

This movie is all about wannabe and turns out not to be about much of anything. I'm a big fan of both Josh Charles and Julia Stiles, and can't believe what ended up on film is what they signed up,for. Stiles is completely wasted in this part. The plot is as nonsensical as the ending. Do not waste your time.