A brutal, bestial & barbaric British horror that paints a harrowing portrait of Britain’s social decay, Eden Lake comes equipped with a menacing tone & foreboding aura that only gets more vicious as plot progresses, and packs a premise that’s ruthless with its content and isn’t for the easily distressed.
The story of Eden Lake follows a young couple who head out to an idyllic setting to spend their weekend but find their romantic getaway disrupted when a local gang of delinquent teenagers show up. As these kids attempt to provoke the couple, it leads to a confrontation that ends with terrifying consequences.
Written & directed by James Watkins in what’s his directorial debut, Eden Lake is an extremely violent, palpably tense & endlessly savage chiller that finds the new filmmaker ratcheting up the tension & mood to nerve-wracking levels in order to present his take on the consequences of child neglect but there are times when he goes overboard.
A chilling sense of dread permeates the atmosphere long before things head south for the couple, and that disquieting chill is effectively maintained till the end. Camerawork is smartly carried out, pacing is precise, the protagonist’s predicament is relatable, and the violence n gore it has in store is disturbingly graphic & cold-blooded.
Coming to the performances, Eden Lake is expertly steered by Kelly Reilly, Michael Fassbender, Jack O’Connell & others. Reilly & Fassbender play the young couple whose peaceful weekend is turned into a nightmare by a brutish teenage gang led by Jack O’Connell’s character. Fassbender does well with what he’s given, Reilly’s input only gets better as plot progresses while O’Connell plays his sadistic character with nothing held back.
On an overall scale, Eden Lake is a taut & terrifying tale of modern youth gone wild that only gets more n more unnerving with time before wrapping itself up on a gut-wrenching note. A genuinely unsettling & profoundly upsetting experience that isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, Eden Lake is a downright chilling horror-thriller that keeps a firm grip on pacing & tension while revelling in extremity and marks a solid start for its debutant director.
★★★½
