NYAD-Neither Good Nor Bad Starring Jodie Foster/Annette Benning

NYAD, now screening one Netflix is a biopic about the Olympic swimmer Dianna Nyad who successfully swam from Cuba to FL in her 60s. The film focuses on four failed attempts by Nyad (Annette Bening) made while in her sixties while aided by her friend/coach Bonnie Stoll in tow. The movie treads slowly as Nyad hawks her tenacious determination to be the only one to make the crossing. Problems with the film arise with Nyad's persona as an over zealous self-promoter.  Her seemingly admirable goal lacks legs and her character flounders in her humanity. It also appears that her dream, drive and its accomplishment are sufficient to suffice for those she enlists which include her friend Still (Jodie Foster) and her navigator John Bartlett (Rhys Ifans).  Their sacrifices in her pursuit of glory, are deemed enough not to make them sorry. The epic swim eluded Nyad and thwarted her four more times in her 60s which makes one wonder about its appeal and whether this merits acclaim as a major ordeal.  The film makes no mention of this achievement being considered as controversial.  The swim has not been ratified by the World Open Water Swimming Assoc. or the Guinness World Book of Records.  Nyad insisted on swimming without the use of a shark cage to espouse risk but did enlist the additional help of 2 kayakers alongside her that utilized a pulse from their rods that sent the few sharks encountered swiftly packing. There's shade cast upon the swim's arduousness as being mitigated by the positioning of the ship and kayaker's to ease the currents.  There was a fear factor of jellyfish and Portuguese man-of-war stings which posed deadly stings that not only ended two attempts but also ended her life for ten seconds. "I saw you die for 10 seconds," Still tells Nyad while she's in a hospital bed chowing on red jello. "So what, I'm here aren't I," is her nonchalant reply along with her mantra cry to try, try again.  The film sinks under cliches of never giving up strewn with plenty of scenes of Nyad throwing up.  Flashbacks into Nyad as a teen swimming sensation who adores her coach until it's revealed he sexually abused her are meant to garner insight into her psyche only add to the depiction of a confused, conceited character with a myopic vision.  Foster is likable in her sensible best role who rolls over to Nyad's needs regardless of how unfeasible or unreasonable. Ifans is your salty seaman who knows the narrow window of feasibility.  Unfortunately, their rancorous banter feels false and why he agrees remains a mystery.  There's very little excitement churning up the waters as we watch Nyad swim laps or pump iron.  NYAD conveys a grueling, demanding swim and an enduring friendship.  Nonetheless, there's hardly enough enthusiastic inducement to float my boat.