Көңілсіздіктен құтылу және жаңа бастамалар

Mike Peters is a struggling comedian who left New York to find success in Los Angeles, and is still upset over his girlfriend of six years, Michelle, breaking up with him six months prior. To help Mike with his depression, his womanizing friend Trent and some other aspiring actor friends try and get him back into the social scene. The movie opens with Mike telling his friend Rob about how desperately he misses Michelle and that she has not called him. Rob explains that "somehow" women "know" not to call their ex boyfriends until they have completely moved on from them. To help Mike recover, Trent coaxes him into an impromptu trip to Las Vegas. Trent succeeds in picking up two waitresses, but Mike's obsession with Michelle ruins Trent's plans. The women seem interested, but Mike spoils the mood, telling his date about her. Back in Los Angeles, Mike, Rob and other friends golf, play video games, and go out. All of them are trying to make it in the entertainment industry. Then they go bar hopping, stopping at a party, and later an after hours spot, where Trent demonstrates his prowess in handling the opposite sex. Inspired by this, Mike meets a woman named Nikki and gets her phone number. His friends insist he wait two days minimum before calling. In the parking lot, some thugs walk by and shoulder into Sue. They pick a fight, obscenities are said and Sue pulls out a gun, scaring the thugs off. The others are put off by Sue having a gun. Sue criticizes Mike for pining after Michelle all this time and Mike walks off, deciding to take a step towards a new relationship. Back at his apartment, however, he leaves a series of increasingly anxious and desperate messages on Nikki's answering machine in the middle of the night, until she picks up the phone and disgustedly orders him not to call her again. Missing Michelle more than ever, he contemplates moving back to New York until Rob comes over and consoles him. Out again for swing night at The Derby, Mike spots a woman named Lorraine. He summons all his courage to approach and connect with her. They both recently broke off relationships and moved to LA, and dance well together. The following morning, Mike receives a call from Michelle, and finds that he no longer misses her. When Lorraine calls him, Mike cuts off his call with Michelle mid sentence while she is saying she loves him, to further things with Lorraine. Like him, Lorraine had disregarded friends' advice to wait days before calling. The next day, the buddies meet at a coffee shop. Trent makes a fool of himself over a pretty redhead in a case of mistaken identity. Mike smirks, knowing that his life is moving forward while Trent is stuck in the past.

Favreau wrote the screenplay for Swingers in about two weeks. His father had given him a screenwriting program on a computer and he wanted to see if he could make a screenplay "just as an exercise". He had moved from Chicago and had also broken up with his girlfriend there, but the stories and events he wrote in were fictional. He had characters that he loosely based on friends, and used fellow actors for the key parts. He had become friends with Vaughn from the 1993 film Rudy, a movie they had acted in together. He had known Livingston from Chicago and their work at ImprovOlympic, and that they moved to Los Angeles around the same time. The title of the film was partly inspired by the Swingers Diner on Beverly Boulevard, a coffee shop that Liman and Favreau frequented. The "you're so money" catchphrase that the film popularized originated from a television commercial with Spike Lee and Michael Jordan in which Lee called Jordan "money".

With the small budget, Favreau agreed to cast himself in the movie. Liman planned to shoot about 18 days with about 12 pages per day. They auditioned and cast Vaughn after considering some other bigger names. Many of the supporting and minor roles were filled from casual auditions and from cast and crew acquaintances. More money was spent on music licensing than for the film itself. Much of the film was shot using short ends, which meant many of the scenes could be filmed for about 60 seconds. It was Favreau's real life apartment at the time. Favreau also used his 1964 Mercury Comet Caliente convertible, which he had bought after his previous car had been stolen and stripped. Swingers was filmed on location at several Los Angeles nightclubs, particularly in the hip Los Feliz neighborhood, including the Dresden Lounge and the Derby. Some of the shots were filmed documentary style with actual bar patrons as the crew could not afford to rent the places outright or hire a number of extras. The additional lighting was kept to a minimum as whenever the lights were brightened, the guests would scatter. The house party scene was filmed at the producers' friends' residences under the guise of a real house party. Vaughn was a frequent visitor. a few blocks from the Franklin Village apartments. The bar where the characters dance is The Derby in Los Feliz, on the corner of Hillhurst and Los Feliz Boulevard, a club inspired by the original 1920s' Brown Derby Club on the same spot.

In addition to casting their friends in key roles, Favreau and Vaughn gave cameo roles to their family members. Vaughn's father, Vernon Vaughn, plays the lucky gambler at the $100 minimum blackjack table, while Favreau's grandmother, Joan Favreau, is the lucky gambler at the $5 minimum blackjack table. Actor Adam Scott, who had lived in the downstairs apartment from Favreau, appeared in the house party scene. Nicole LaLoggia, who was the line producer for the film, cameoed as the voice of Michelle towards the end of the film. Swingers would later get a distribution by Buena Vista Home Video. On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 71 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun Times gave Swingers three out of a possible four stars, writing: "It's not a terribly original idea, [yet] the movie is sweet, funny [and] observant." Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave the film an “A”, especially praising Favreau for his "exuberantly witty script". Kenneth Turan of Los Angeles Times wrote that the film “knows how to breathe life into its people, and hooking audiences is its reward.” Todd McCarthy of Variety praised the film’s engaging tone, writing that it’s “refreshingly human in its humor.”

It served as a breakthrough for Vaughn, who gained public exposure and critical acclaim for his performance. In particular, he caught the eye of Steven Spielberg when a copy of the film was sent to the director so they could clear the rights for the Jaws music. Spielberg then cast Vaughn in The Lost World: Jurassic Park. Director Liman also used the film to help launch a successful career in Hollywood (he would later be known for The Bourne Identity), and it was the first major film for Livingston. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy credits much of their later music success to their appearance in the film.