Eden Lake dir. by

20 September 2008


Genre:
Script:
Cast: , , , , , , ,


See also: IMDb ; Other reviews

Jenny and Steve have a quiet weekend in the country planned. A romantic weekend, and Steve is bringing an engagement ring. Awww. Steve wants to show Jenny an abandoned quarry[1] that he used to visit, the area is under construction, the one-time public park is being turned into a gated community called Eden Lake[2] Which of course means that getting to the quarry lake involves going slightly off track through the woods. So when things turn bad be prepared for plenty of running through the trees.

I was really doubtful over this film. But one of the lads wanted to go, and I’ll give pretty much anything a chance[3] so we went. Expecting a slasher, almost torture-porn film. So maybe the fact that my expectations were so low is why I actually really liked this film.

Everything is so realistic. And the situation that Jenny and Steve find themselves in escalates so slowly that you do think that maybe, just maybe, that could happen in real life. The dynamics between the teenage gang is just great. On first look they all seem to be the same, indistinguishable hostile and aggressive kids. But as the film progresses and they get in more and more trouble you can really see how the leader, Brett, dominates the gang and how, through peer pressure, they just can’t bring themselves to back down until it is too late.

That isn’t too say that this is a great film, but it really does work at creating a tension-filled, doom-laden atmosphere. There are some moments of extreme violence though, so if that isn’t your thing I’d stay well away. If you like horror you should enjoy this.

It will mean that you will never, ever, ever confront a gang of hoodies though.

Linknotes:

  1. it is a lot prettier than that sounds
  2. see the social commentary!
  3. *pretty* much anything, there are some I will avoid, looking at the likes of Saw

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