Freddie Prinze Jr. is back. But honestly, it’s not the way you remember him from the late nineties. There’s no slow-motion walk or "Kiss Me" playing in the background. In The Girl in the Pool, things get dark, messy, and deeply stressful within the first five minutes.
The premise is a nightmare. Imagine throwing a surprise 50th birthday party for your husband, only he’s hiding a literal corpse in the backyard. That is the engine driving this 2024 thriller. It’s a claustrophobic, high-stakes disaster movie, but instead of a volcano or an asteroid, the disaster is a dead mistress and a very expensive swimming pool.
People are talking about this movie because it feels like a throwback to those mid-budget domestic thrillers we used to get in the nineties. You know the ones. The "shaking-the-camera-while-someone-panics" type of cinema. It’s directed by Dakota Gorman, and it takes a very specific, cringe-inducing look at what happens when a "perfect" life hits a brick wall. Or, in this case, a body in the water.
What Actually Happens in The Girl in the Pool?
Tom is a man who seemingly has it all. Wealthy family. Beautiful home. A wife who loves him enough to gather all their friends for a milestone celebration. But Tom is also a liar. He’s been having an affair with a woman named Hannah. On the day of his party, Hannah shows up. She’s not there for cake. After a tense confrontation, she ends up dead in his pool.
Then the doorbell rings.
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His wife, played by Monica Potter, is standing there with a house full of guests. Tom has to decide: confess and lose everything, or hide the body while making small talk and drinking expensive wine. Most of the movie takes place in real-time, or close to it. This creates a ticking clock that is genuinely suffocating. You’re watching Tom try to navigate a social minefield while his life is literally decomposing a few yards away.
The Freddie Prinze Jr. Factor
It’s interesting seeing Prinze in this role. We usually associate him with the "golden boy" archetype. Here, he’s frantic. He’s sweating. He’s making terrible decisions. It’s a performance built on internal collapse. He’s not a hero. He’s a guy trying to preserve a lie, and the movie doesn't really want you to root for him. It wants you to watch him squirm.
Why This Movie Hits Different Than Other Thrillers
Most thrillers give the protagonist a way out. A clever trick. A hidden weapon. In The Girl in the Pool, the "weapon" is just Tom’s own desperation. There’s a psychological weight to it that feels heavier than your average slasher flick.
The film relies heavily on the "bottle movie" format. Almost everything happens in one location. This forces the audience to feel as trapped as Tom is. You can’t look away because there’s nowhere else for the camera to go. It stays on his face as he tries to lie to his children. It stays on the pool cover.
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- The pacing is erratic, mirroring Tom's heart rate.
- The lighting shifts from bright, celebratory party vibes to cold, clinical shadows.
- The dialogue is sharp, often cutting through the tension with moments of dark, accidental humor.
The Reality of the "One Location" Thriller
Filmmaking on a budget often leads to creative breakthroughs. By sticking to the house, Gorman forces the audience to memorize the layout. You know where the kitchen is. You know where the sliding glass door leads. This makes the stakes higher because you know exactly how close the guests are to discovering the truth. It's like a game of Minesweeper where every guest is a potential click that ends the game.
Monica Potter’s performance shouldn't be overlooked here either. She brings a grounded, slightly suspicious energy that makes Tom’s job even harder. She’s the emotional core of the movie, representing everything Tom stands to lose. Every time she looks at him with affection, the audience feels a spike of guilt because we know what’s under that pool cover.
Addressing the Critics and the Ending
Look, this isn't Citizen Kane. Some people have found the plot a bit thin or the characters frustrating. And yeah, Tom makes some truly baffling choices. But that’s kinda the point of a thriller, right? If everyone acted rationally, the movie would be ten minutes long. The frustration is part of the experience.
The ending of The Girl in the Pool has sparked a lot of debate online. Without spoiling the final frames, it’s safe to say it doesn't wrap everything up in a neat little bow. It leaves you with a lingering sense of dread. It asks the question: even if you get away with it, are you ever actually free?
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How to Watch and What to Look For
If you’re planning on sitting down with this one, pay attention to the sound design. The muffled sounds of the party filtered through the glass doors while Tom is outside dealing with the "problem" are masterfully done. It creates a sensory disconnect. You hear the laughter and the music, but you're seeing something horrific.
- Watch it in a dark room to catch the subtle shifts in the cinematography.
- Don't expect a traditional "whodunit"—it's a "how-will-he-hide-it."
- Keep an eye on the background characters; their casual observations often provide the biggest threats to Tom’s plan.
The Verdict on The Girl in the Pool
Is it a masterpiece? Probably not. Is it a tense, well-acted, and deeply uncomfortable 90 minutes? Absolutely. It’s a solid pick for fans of domestic thrillers who miss the era of movies like Unfaithful or A Perfect Murder. It’s about the fragility of the suburban dream and how quickly a single mistake can turn a life into a crime scene.
If you want to see a different side of Freddie Prinze Jr. and you enjoy movies that make your palms sweat, give it a stream. Just maybe don't watch it right before you host a party.
To get the most out of your viewing experience, compare it to other "single-day disaster" films like Phone Booth or Locke. It occupies a similar space where the protagonist is their own worst enemy. Pay close attention to the way the camera lingers on objects—a glass of wine, a pair of shoes, a cell phone—to see how the director builds suspense through mundane details. Once the credits roll, consider the moral implications of the final scene; it's designed to be discussed.