Netflix viewers hail new true drama a 'masterpiece' despite controversial storyline

A new Netflix drama has been praised as a 'masterpiece' after documenting a controversial story.

In terms of long distance swimming, you might think that swimming the Channel would be the ultimate feat of endurance.

You have cold water, wet suits aren't allowed, enormous ships to avoid, not to mention the prospect of raw sewage, at least on the British side.

But now, Netflix has released a film about a woman who managed a feat which was even longer than that.

We are talking about Diana Nyad, who attempted an astonishing swim across the Florida Straits.

For those who don't know, this is the body of water situated between the Florida Keys to the north, and Cuba to the south.

Between the southernmost part of Florida at Key West and Havana in Cuba, this is a distance of around 106 miles.

The waters between Cuba and Florida are much warmer, but with warmer water comes a whole flotilla of other dangers.

Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Audible

These are, of course, the many species of shark and jellyfish which live in the warm waters.

And we're not talking small sharks and jellyfish that just tickle you a bit. We're talking Tiger Sharks and Bull Sharks, as well as Box Jellyfish and the Portuguese Man O'War, which although not technically a jellyfish is still something you need to avoid.

The perfectly-named Nyad, a 'naiad' is a water spirit in Greek mythology, attempted the swim without a shark cage.

Despite wearing a protective suit for stings, had to abandon previous attempts due to Portuguese Man O'War stings on her face.

Netflix

When she finally completed the feat in 2013, she wore a silicon mask, which although it protected her face from the stings, resulted in her swallowing a lot of seawater, causing bouts of vomiting.

And after the gruelling 53-hour-long swim, her record was not ratified by the Guinness Book of World Records, because it was not sufficiently documented.

Nyad told the LA Times: “I thought we had provided all the proof we needed.

“And maybe I had too much hubris, like, ‘I don’t need to prove this to anybody.’ That’s my bad. But it wasn’t to obfuscate the rules. We were never told, ‘You’ve got to do this or you won’t be ratified.’”

Now the film Nyad on Netflix, starring Jodie Foster, will show a dramatised version of the epic swim, and the woman who carried it out.

Viewers have piled into the comments to heap praise on the new film.

One wrote: "I watched this yesterday. I highly recommend this movie! It is a story of never giving up and the cast is great."

A second posted: "Watched it tonight - and cried. The power of the mind the determination, the resilience, the self-belief!"

A third wrote: So very inspiring! The inner resilience and determination is mind blowing. I’ve watched it twice…her three things speech at the end."