I was very excited to see falcon lake. I’m a big fan of horror drama, and the trailer because this movie made it sound like a hauntingly beautiful coming-of-age story with a ghostly twist. It seemed to be right up my alley so I took the opportunity to check it out. I requested a screener as soon as I could, and after getting a chance to look at it, I’m happy to report that I wasn’t disappointed.
falcon lake was directed and co-written by Charlotte Le Bon, and stars Joseph Engel, Sara Montpetit, Monia Chokri, Arthur Igual, Karine Gonthier-Hyndman, Thomas Laperrière, Anthony Therrien, Pierre-Luc Lafontaine, Lévi Doré and Jeff Roop. It’s about a young French teenager named Bastien who goes to Quebec for a summer vacation with his family, and while he’s there, he meets a girl named Chloe. The two kids hit it off quickly, and the entire movie is basically the story of their budding relationship.
As you might guess from that brief plot synopsis, falcon lake It mainly focuses on the “drama” part of the horror drama, with horror playing a supporting role. In fact, it’s so light on horror that as I neared the end, I wondered if I’d be able to review it here on Horror Obsessive. It’s pretty much straight-up drama for the vast majority of its runtime, only adding a touch of horror in the final minutes.
So if you’re looking for a scare with thrills and chills around every corner, this is definitely not the movie for you. But if you’re okay with 90 minutes of drama and about five minutes of horror, I think you’ll really like it. falcon lake.
For starters, the acting in this movie is excellent. The cast is all good, but hands down the best performances here belong to Joseph Engel and Sara Montpetit, the actors who play Bastien and Chloe. They do a great job of capturing both the awkwardness of teen romance and the “I don’t want anything to do with anyone or anything” attitude that many teens have toward the things their parents make them do, so I bought into these characters quite a bit. speed.
To be fair, I don’t think everyone likes their performances. They’re not the kind of confident, almost adult performances you see from kids in projects like He either Strange things, so they’re going to look a bit amateurish to some viewers. But the way I see it, that’s the point. Sure, the kids in He and Strange things they do an amazing job, but they smooth out some of the harsher aspects of teenage life and make it a little brighter than it really is.
However, in falcon lake, we get the real deal. Joseph Engel and Sara Montpetit capture facets of teenage life that you don’t normally see in big Hollywood productions, and I found that really refreshing. Like I said, it made me believe in Bastien and Chloe almost immediately, and since this whole movie is basically just their story, it was a great viewing experience. I was really engrossed in their budding relationship, so my eyes were glued to the screen the whole time.
Besides that, falcon lake it also has a hauntingly beautiful vibe. In fact, even though this is mostly a drama, there are moments where the atmosphere makes it feel like a horror movie and it works perfectly. It’s hard to describe if you haven’t seen it, but it’s almost as if director Charlotte Le Bon took an atmosphere of horror and transposed it into a more dramatic key. She made me feel right at home, so even when nothing particularly scary was going on, she helped me scratch that horror itch just enough to keep me satisfied.
Last but not least, let’s talk about the actual horror in this movie. Like I said, the first 90 minutes or so are pretty dramatic, but do sprinkle in a few nods to the horror genre here and there. At a point in falcon lakeChloe mentions that there’s a ghost in the lake, and until the final scene, you’re never sure if she’s telling the truth.
Granted, there are some very good reasons not to believe him, and if this were real life, I’d even say the case against the spirit’s existence is pretty watertight. But since this is a movie, you can’t help but wonder if maybe, just maybe, there might actually be something to her story, and that uncertainty hangs over the entire movie. It makes you very curious to find out the truth, and just like the atmosphere, it also helps to scratch that horror itch.
Then, in the final minutes, the horror really comes out, and it’s quite effective. Granted, it’s not exactly terrifying, but it packs a huge emotional punch, and the way it fits into the rest of the story makes for a super satisfying ending. Walk into falcon lake, I was afraid that the horror would feel a little shoe-in, but that was not the case at all. It ends up being such a natural and organic part of the story that it’s actually quite clever, so when the credits started to roll, I was a very happy viewer.
Having said all this, I must admit that falcon lake It’s not a perfect movie. As much as I loved Chloe and Bastien’s relationship, there was one scene I had a problem with. At one point in the movie, they do something sexual together (it’s unclear exactly what they’re doing, but the basic point is pretty obvious), and I thought that was pretty unnecessary. Bastien is only 13 and Chloe is only 16, so there’s no need to include something like that in this story.
However, in the grand scheme of things, that’s a relatively minor complaint, so overall I had a great time with it. falcon lake. It’s a hauntingly beautiful coming-of-age story with an incredible spooky twist, so if you’re a fan of horror drama, I highly recommend you watch this movie.
falcon lake hits select theaters June 2 and then hits VOD June 13.
