Touch the Wall

Gr 8 Up—Beginning in a tattoo parlor, this documentary introduces Kara Lynn Joyce and Missy Franklin, both swimmers with the same goal: to compete in the 2012 London Olympics. Kara has been to the Olympics before, but Missy is just starting on the journey. Kara, 25 and a four-time silver medalist, joins the Colorado Stars, a swim club for athletes under the age of 18, and meets 14-year-old Missy. Both learn to push each other, but as the competition heats up, Kara finds herself unable to keep up with youngsters like Missy. Eventually what appears to be one story line becomes two, as Missy learns to handle the media attention and Kara decides she belongs somewhere else and leaves the Stars. With both young women serving as good role models, this film is also about friendship instead of rivalry, which is refreshing to see in a movie about competitive sports. The work ends where it begins, where viewers find out if a nervous and unsure Kara gets inked. The film intercuts interviews of coaches, parents, and athletes with lots of action of practice and competition. It starts 593 days before the trials, and the countdown lends itself to the build-up to the Olympic events.