Genres

Visitors Review

sebbemungiga 2012-05-25 08:40:37

Predictable genre action in slasher movie.

First, the subject of this movie is promising, it gives the movie thepotential of being a strong and disturbing and uncomfortable movie,which is something I appreciate. This is really the kind of things thatactually happens out there in real life, and when it does it alwayssend shock waves trough the community and wakes strong reactions fromthe public; young kids committing violent crimes, teenagers harassingeach other or adults as it seems without any moral guidelines, withoutany limitations in brutality. Juicy! But.. I got disappointed - becauselike other genre-films in the slasher/gore-class , this is in fact aslasher-movie, also this film follows a pattern: have a build up, and aclimax, and what follows is the rest of the film which is verypredictable: it contains a line of sequences about running-around inforests, screaming, hiding, getting dirty by all mud, having onesclothes torn apart, bleeding, hiding.. And ..after seeing some of thiskind of movies you know exactly what's gonna happen. It is becomingvery predictable.If you are into the subject of young folks going over the edge, I wouldmuch more recommend a movie like "Bully" (or the more Hollywood styled"Alpha dog".) I find Bully, which is also about you kids committingviolent crimes, much more deeply terrifying and shocking , and that'seven if there's no gore or splatter in that movie. It also digs moredeeply into the underlying moods of a disrupting society moral thatcreates the environment for these kind of crimes.

letlose-2 2012-05-24 21:30:08

What a waste of time!

I can't believe I actually believed the previous comments on this filmand watched it. I wasted 1.5 hours and so I don't want anyone else towaste their time as well. The plot was very similar to Texas ChainsawMasacre except that that was a believable horror film and it was alsobased on true events and it was made so that there were actually noplot holes to pick at.In this ridiculous excuse for a horror film, a couple in peril actedand reacted quite contrary to how normal people would act, which mademe quite annoyed, especially when I'm watching horror flicks. Theirplight unfolded as the film progressed and I can't help but wish themthe worst of luck for the way they were behaving. I didn't enjoy thisfilm for a second, except when the credits started to roll. The endingwas as stupid as the film itself, and reflected the fact that thepeople who made this film didn't bother with the contents much and paideven less attention to how it would end. If you like disgusting gorebuilt around a stupid plot (that guarantees to have you saying "that'sb**lsh*t" all throughout) and a couple of nice looking actors then thismight be for you.

dvd123 2012-05-22 01:50:46

One Dimensional

If you're looking for a glimpse into lower class English youthsadism... this is it. In that sense it almost plays like a documentary.If you're looking for more than that, though, I'd go elsewhere. AClockwork Orange, for instance, covers similar territory, but, thanksto the brilliance of Kubrick, ventures so much farther. Thatbrilliance, alas, cannot be found here.Spoiler: A naive dimwitted couple vacationing in a remote area stirs upa hornet's nest of sadistic youth. The kids kill the man, the girlkills a couple kids, makes her way to civilization, only to be killedby the kid's parents.They stretch it out with plenty of tiresome chases and even moregratuitous sadism, but that's the core. Does that sound like afantastic movie to you? This kind of movie could only be made inBritain, as any Hollywood producer listening to this pitch would laughin their face.If you need a dose of locals gone loco, go check out Deliverance. Ifyou need sadism (or therapy), it's not the best movie, but Hostel isbetter than this. To be honest, just about any woods based horror flickis better than this- even Wrong Turn.I will give it credit for one thing. It's very simple. A ten year oldcould probably follow the plot. There's no B story, no humor, nosoundtrack, no CGI and no sets. And the acting is somewhat believable.Overall, though, it's a 15 minute story trapped in a 90 minute movie.

timharries 2012-05-21 23:47:47

Eden Lake: A mirror into the dark

Eden Lake is an exceptionally brutal and unflinching film. Disturbingand bleak to its very end in its portrayal of Britain's "yoof culture"gone bad, it also happens to be one of the most important films of thisyear.Never have I watched a film which adheres so closely to the coda ofsocial unrest stories seemingly embedded in our past and currentpress-from child abuse, bullying, happy slapping and vandalism to thedarker issues of gang mentality and knife crime, the film mines theseissues to powerful effect, creating a patchwork of scenes sculpted withawful accuracy, ensuring that what unfolds on screen is never more thana half-step away from reality.It is for this reason alone that we can dismiss all ideas of this filmsomehow "glamorizing" its subject matter. The violence here is deeplyunpleasant, realistic and horrendous, without ever becoming a pasticheof itself. There is no doubt that the film pushes the margins at times-the sudden burning of an Asian boy is an example of one of the weakermoments, coming across as stuffing to the film's already high "shockfactor" and threatens to push events into the sensational."Eden Lake" is quite the opposite to other similarly themed horrorssuch as: "The Last House On The Left" in that it is a film that refusesto offer the main protagonists the chance to take revenge on theirpersecutors. (a duality that was at the core of Wes Craven's film)Rather than the film fading to black once retribution has been served,here the act is punished with a further layer of violence, this timemeted out by the older generation, who all show the self-same traits astheir off-spring - their murky realisation quickly mounting to amob-like frenzy. It is a chilling message indeed, made all the more forthe rich seam of social-realism that runs throughout the film, leavingthe viewer with a sense of utter loss and futility.

little-tornado 2012-05-20 03:53:04

"No need for hillbilly mutants here!"

I began watching this film with NO idea what it was about. When a filmbegins with characters setting out on what is meant to be an idylliccamping trip to a secluded woodland, I always expect the villain to beone of either a cannibal, mutant, hillbilly or inbred race(asdemonstrated in films such as Wrong Turn and Deliverance)and I thoughtno differently when I began to watch Eden Lake. What makes this film unique and more disturbing than other films ofthis genre is that the protagonists are being terrorised by Britishyouths that are recognisable to any person living in our currentsociety. As it becomes clear the group of teens that our twoprotagonists meet in the forest are more aggressive and threateningthan first thought, it really does hit home what horror and violencehuman beings are capable of - no need for mutant hillbillies in thisfilm. Jack O'connels character, Brett, is merciless, aggressive andmisguided creating a truly dangerous character who is also very real.You can barely fault the acting in this film, especially that ofMichael Fassbender who's performance as Steve is subtle andheart-warming, which makes you feel for his character almost as KellyReillys character, Jenny does. The two play a couple who are perfectlyin love and their relationship is wonderfully portrayed on screen withgreat chemistry between the two actors making the gruesome scenes thathappen throughout the film tragic and difficult to watch.The film is fast paced with a well developed narrative that isfrustrating, exciting and tragic. There is gore and threat throughoutand non of the content in this film is hard to believe. Rather thanlarge machetes, chainsaws, streamers and other brutal, imaginativeweaponary used in films such as Saw and Hostel, all Eden Lake uses is asmall knife, a chain and mobile phone to create some really sickeningscenes- and it works! The film brings out emotions I never expected it to, as well as beingan entertaining horror flick. Thought provoking and exciting, Eden Lakewill not be easily forgotten. Enjoy.

BrugesBelgium 2012-05-20 00:48:26

Eden Lake, a place full of coincidences

If you don't want to put a lot of thought into a movie, you may findthis an amusing and exciting movie. However when you don't put rational thought aside, you may well begetting annoyed or maybe bored. Afterwards it looks like the movie waspuzzled rather fast, you have the main storyline with the couple who isbeing brutally bullied and eventually slaughtered by young brads andtheir family/friends. Then you have this sideline events that happenlike the guy who'd like to propose and saw this low budget trip as theperfect location. Or the boy with the caterpillar's, also a part of themovie that doesn't feel quite fit in. The concept itself is not bad atall but the movie itself could of been more symbiotic.The concept is made quite realistic, but... As many thrillers or horrormovies, the events have to be shaped to form a thrilling experience. Inthis movie it began to get predictable.(everybody is family of everyonefor example) In a huge forest they seem to be able to still encountereach other every single time. Jenny (Kelly Reilly) for example had ofcourse stepped on a piece of metal -that was sticking out- that piercedher foot. In this whole huge forest, she of course stepped on it. Thebad injury even seemed not to bother her after a while. Another exampleis that she was driving a car, and of course one of the bullys (thegirl) just stepped on the road when she raged on, intentionally killingher because she speeded up. The acting itself was not bad, but not brilliant at all. As a lastfact, it seemed the director also wanted to put a focus on KellyReilly's boobs, clearly pointed out on the beach-scene and then iscamera-angled continuing throughout the movie. It was hard not to lookat, something the male audience probably definitely didn't mind at all.If you search for a deeper movie or a mind breaker, this is not yourmovie. If you like to watch action, thrilling experience and acontinuing struggle between a loving couple and mad children, it is abetter fit.

mills-sam 2012-05-19 09:30:26

Disappointing

Alright this first little paragraph isn't about the movie but it'sstill worth a read. Right, so every now and then my dad tells me thatone of his work mates have lent him a DVD. I start to sigh (I sighbecause the films he borrows are usually terrible) and somehow I getstuck watching them with him. So recently the idea came into my headthat I should 'IMDB' movies first before I watch them and if the filmgets 7stars or higher I'll watch it. Somehow this film got 7! So thisprompted me to write this review and if more people did this we wouldhave a more accurate reviewing system.So the problem about this movie is that it was greatly predictable. Ifyou like these types of movies then go for it, but in my opinion it'san hour and a half of your life wasted what your not gonna get back. Wewatched the first 20 minutes and let it off at some bits what you thinkwouldn't happen, but then it carries on and gets worse. Me and my dadusually give films two chances before we take them out of the player.It's an epic unrealistic movie.For some reason the guy seems to act like Ned Flanders and takes loadsof crap off the teenagers who he encounters at the beach. Later on hetakes even more abuse off them and his girl friend doesn't back him upat all. The teenagers are about 13 and maybe one or two are 16. Thisfilm is so annoying because you keep thinking what you'd do in thatsort of situation and the film makes the lead guy way to forgiving forhis own good. Actually even Ned Flanders would lose patience with them.Me and my dad lost patience with the film and took it out after aboutthree quarters of an hour. It left us feeling angry and annoyed. I'mglad we didn't watch the end because it was most probablydisappointing. The film had great camera footage and decent acting, butit still wasn't enough to save it. Unfortunately it had a weak storyline which was full of holes. Maybe I'm a harsh critic but this film isseriously not worth watching.

CJ 2012-05-19 05:12:48

Good movie

Ending was sad, i wished i was there with my guns, i would unleash justice on those mofos. Thank god in america we have the right to bear arms.

Jebadiah Handsome 2012-05-09 20:24:00

garbage in garbage out

poor acting, terrible story, the idea that sum punk kids could do thatis ridiculous, old man strength always wins out over youth being as youage your muscles develop more, i can see what the director was tryingto do, but next time just don't, although i am writing this in my ownopinion and to my taste as obviously others think this movie is good.what i consider a good movie is something like memento, or almostanything with Guy Pearce, and keywords being almost, like all actorshes dun sum crap jobbers as well. Now if your thinking about watchingthis movie don't, opt out for last house on the left. although thegraphic rape scene in the movie made me turn it off right there, iheard its still good if you can get past that.

alien-90 2012-05-09 08:46:15

A disturbing surprise ! --contains spoiler !!--

Lord of the flies, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, maybe even Apocalypto musthave been among James Watkins' inspirations while making this film.(Italso has some similarities to the 2006 Irish film 'Wilderness') Eden Lake however feels much closer to home than the titles I justmentioned. I came out of this with the feeling that such an event couldvery well take place in today's society.A pretty impressive directorial debut from James Watkins, who came upwith a simple storyline (A couple go on a holiday and get terrorized inthe woods by a nasty gang of youths) and still really made it work outwell. Eden Lake never looks or feels cheap. The film stays at pace and even the chilling ending, that turned forexample 'funny games U.S.' into a total disaster seems to work well forEden Lake.This is a well made straight forward thriller that serves up some realhigh tension.

aaronpynn32-1 2012-04-30 00:57:54

I am Sick Of this Type Of Film

This review contains serious spoilers. Not that it'll be hard to figureout this one. Here we have another utterly depressing downbeat filmwith a horrible ending that'll get rave horror fan reviews for itsgrittiness.The movie is gritty alright and about as fun as a tooth ache. I'm surethis type of ending on this style of film was original and fresh aboutten years ago but its not ten years.Horror decided to go back to its 70s roots and give films of utterdespair. Movies that had no winners. Films where the good guy alwaysdies and the film just wallows in its own muck.This type of depressing crap may be wonderful if you: a) Decide you'relife as a goth or emo has way too much meaning so you need one morefilm to depress you even more b) You hate kids and want to give areason to never ever have any c) You think films like Hostel and theSaw franchise are just to cheery for you and you want that extra reasonto end it all I never thought I'd have to say this about horror. butthis has gone on for too long and its stale and old.Damn those film makers for taking such good actors as these and puttingthem in tired old cliché situations like these.Don't like anyone in this film EVERY likable character is offed. itsnot a fun film. The message has been done before and better.I commend the actors for the work they did and I truly hope they all goon to much better things.This isn't the worse film I have seen not even close but it no longerbelongs, this style of horror should be a dead genre.This could have been a great revenge flick but the director completelyscrews the audience of any sort of release. Its a complete build upwith absolutely no where to go.Imagine if I spit on Your Grave had them rape her and then after shegets her back to her house they shot her in the head and creditsrolled. Ya Thats the kind of inept film making you get with this one.I am utterly appalled that so many reviewers get taken in by thebleakness and automatically giving it a good review with actuallythinking.This movie isn't any sort of revolution. Its the worse type of filmmaking. When you have good actors and the start of what should be anengaging script and then throw it away in the last act in order toprove yourself as an edgy film-maker its sad. You just come off lookingdesperate and not half as cool as you think you are.Let the renovations go through and let them plow Eden Lake and thiswhole pathetic genre.Stick a fork in it...its done...

Kellie Stewart 2012-04-29 06:45:17

Must see

This is the best suspense movie I have seen since I don't know when. Iwonder what the inspiration for it was. This is a movie that shows usthat we should pay attention to the way we are raising our children andpay attention to who they are associating with. The kids in this moviewere punks on bikes that just seemed annoying. The couple that fellvictim were just trying to enjoy a quiet weekend. If the children hadnot been such punks, nothing would have escalated. Once things gowrong, you see the bully mentality of the gang leader making unwillingfriends do things that go against their being. They were all too afraidof him to act against him as a group. The view into the father of themain boy proves that a bullied child will continue and be a bullierhimself. I could not take my eyes off of this movie. I was well writtenand well plotted. The special effects of the injuries were very goodand made you wince when you saw the extent of them. If you likesuspense, this is the movie for you.

2012-04-28 16:22:03

LOVED THIS MOVIE!

This movie was a pleasant surprise ... I don't usually like "scary" movies but I do LOVE disturbing movies like these... I have a little list of favorites and even got a few more recommendations on these reviews that I can't wait to check out!If you know of any other films like Eden Lake, The Strangers, Wolf Creek... please share them with me.. I would love to check them out!brandarooo@gmail.com

DEMIAN VENTURA 2012-04-28 03:40:33

Very realist movie, disturbing for the weak hearted.

The theme of the movie is somehow interesting...Couple going on a shortvacation and getting bullied by rebel, ruthless teenagers...Goodhorror, although I found it to be pretty realist...This is what happensnowadays with lack of education... A wise guy said that we wereeducated wrongly by our parents to behave nice, be honest andsuch...This new era is much more about learning to defendyourself...Not letting shameless people abuse one and instead act in away that will put them in place...These teenagers act like this becausetheir parents allowed them to much, instead of teaching them the realvalues...There are some scenes where this proves to be the real thing,such as after the guy defends himself he is ashamed of doing it andapologizes it.

hyperbarry 2012-04-24 21:15:29

Disgusting Garbage

What makes this film so disgusting is that it breaks the filmmaker'spact with the audience: that if we are going to be subjected totwo-some hours of brutality, in which evil thugs seem to triumph; thanwe expect and deserve satisfaction in the ending.We expect and deserve to see the bad guys defeated and punished; andthe good guys ultimately triumph. And all our pent-up rage released ina satisfying burst of cathartic violence.Not here. Not in Eden Lake.What we get here is one act after another of senseless brutalityperpetrated by young thugs upon decent people. And in the end, theworst of these psychotics smugly smiles into the camera; having gottenaway with multiple murders.I hated the characters; I hated the story; and I despise the writer andfilmmaker for subjecting me and all viewers to this filth.No stars; don't waste your time, emotions, and ultimately money on thispiece of disgusting garbage.

mae montilla 2012-04-24 09:19:05

Bad Movies

The movie is so bad, and very disturb movie so who ever write or direct of this movie they should have values that the viewer can get on the film. But somehow it all violence only.

2012-04-22 21:49:59

Fishing For Trouble

EDEN LAKE is skillfully shot and paced, contains some superb acting and directing, and is, as far as movies like this go, almost flawless.Also, I couldn't stand it.The movie starts with a young schoolteacher named Jenny ending her classes for the week. Her students (kindies, by the looks) obey her every gesture, and look upon her with tender and unquestioning fealty. She then leaves class, hops in a car with her boyfriend, Steve, and the two of them drive off for a romantic weekend at Eden Lake, where they encounter some of the worst kids in Britain.Cue: pointless torture, terror, violence, and rage.I'm no stranger to those elements in a movie, and EDEN LAKE deserves kudos for trying to make its point culturally relevant. During the drive to the lake, Jenny and Steve listen to a radio talk show about how bad children are these days. Is society to blame? The schools? The parents? The talk show leaves these questions up to the audience. The movie, not so much.Written and directed by relative newcomer, James Watkins, EDEN LAKE will (and should) appeal to moviegoers of certain types. And unlike so many of these kinds of films, this one has a powerful and intelligent ending. But I hated it. Hated, hated, hated it. I haven't asked Watkins, but I have a suspicion that he intended a reaction of that variety. At least it packs a wallop, which is more than you can say for most movies today.But -- powerful or no -- my closing impression of the film, after an hour and a half of riveting, emotional, heartbreaking suspense, is pure, unadulterated disgust. Again, probably the point, but it means I can't, in good conscience, recommend this movie to anyone I want to keep as a friend. In fact, next time I want to ponder the kinds of questions this movie prompts, I'll probably just tune in to a talk radio show.

kev_silv 2012-04-22 07:32:05

those kids need a spanking!

this film was OK all in all, it had solid acting, blood/gore was great,but it didn't really make me jump in suspense or anything. the wholestory is kind of predictable but you can see past that due to the greatatmosphere of running for your life in the woods. the other thing thatreally annoyed me through out the movie was that all of this mayhem wasdue to a bunch of kids. outnumbered or not i would lay them all down ifi was the boyfriend, just goes to show you..nice guys finish last.Overall a pretty descent film that delivers on how to survive a bunchof reckless kids...not to mention the ending was pretty dull. worth awatch if you've seen all the good horror/thrillers out there already.

2012-04-21 18:32:26

A Nasty Little Gem!

I did not expect much from this movie when I purchased it, but it completely blew me away. WOW! My eyes were glued throughout the entire movie. The suspense was amazing. I definitely recommend this movie to those who enjoy violent flicks. Pick it up--you might like it!

EckyThump 2012-04-21 13:26:38

Like a tyre iron to the head, Eden Lake carries an unforgettable impact.

When the agent provocateur of British exploitation film, Pete Walker,debuted Frightmare - his riveting and truly disturbing combo platter ofcannibalistic pensioners and nihilistic delinquents - in 1974, he saidhe wanted audiences to walk away from screenings feeling angry andfrustrated. He achieved that aim, but if James Watkins, the writer anddirector of Eden Lake had similar ambitions with this chilling slice ofgruesome social commentary - and judging by the interviews conductedwith the man on the Optimum DVD, it was - then he manages to trumpWalker's seminal film several times over, creating a blistering, angrydenunciation of yob culture, youth crime and (as another user puts it)"the snarling, violent, uneducated face of modern Britain) that can'tfail to elicit a response.Critically acclaimed and devastatingly well made, Eden Lake overcomesthe slightly clumsy first act - in which credibility is strained just atouch too far for comfort - to deliver a truly terrifying white-knuckleride that speaks volumes on the sorry state of 21st century Britain.Remember the Garry Newlove case? To refresh your memory, Newlove was adevoted family man who confronted a group of drunken teenage vandalsoutside his home and was kicked to death, simply because he'd chosen tostand up for his home, his loved ones and his belongings. Eden Lakeoffers a provocative and all-too-believable spin on the standardtabloid hoodie horror stories that comes closer to cruel reality thanany number of documentaries or sociologist's reports.Jenny and Steve, a young middle-class couple, decide to spend a weekendat an old haunt of Steve's - a flooded quarry in the British midlands.It quickly becomes clear that the place is not what it was. The localsare foul-mouthed, ignorant and unpleasant, and the first day of theirholiday is fouled up by a group of truly hateful louts. Things escalatefrom there - their property, then their transport, gets stolen, and aconfrontation with the young hooligans turns nasty. Before you know it,the film has shifted into top gear and stays there for seventypulverising minutes. Sampling the likes of the Hills Have Eyes, I SpitOn Your Grave, Last House on the Left and Deliverance along the way,Watkins pulls the viewer into a stark and bloody vision of uncheckedteenage misbehaviour run amok - and it's not just the teens who arerotten in this neck of the woods...Eden Lake overcomes a contrived and sometimes frustrating set-up toshine as one of the best British horror films ever created. For years,the words 'British horror film' were synonymous with wonky sets, dodgyspecial effects, archaic monsters, lurid overacting and buxom peasantgirls in peril. Thanks to Watkins, that poor reputation may be on itsway to the history books once and for all. If his next offering is evenhalf as good as Eden Lake, it should be well worth looking forward to.