 Thanks for checking out this movie review video. So this is for the 2019 film Lake of Death It's a Norwegian film. So it is subtitled it will be available on shutter on Thursday, July 16th when I'm putting up this review It's actually a bit ahead of time just because I get shutter screeners. So thank you very much shutter for that so this is a no spoilers review since it's going up before the film is even available and It's kind of a way so people can check it out and be like, oh, you know based on what he's saying This is sound like something I want to check out now like everything This is just kind of based on my feelings about the film my opinions You know plenty of times I've done reviews and people are like, oh you said you didn't really like this But I loved it or the opposite you said you really loved this. I hated it So it's up to you just based off what you hear Do you want to watch it or not or you know my personal opinion every movie is worth watching at least once Just to get your own personal opinion on it. So take that for what you will anyway Lake of Death is written and directed by Nini bull Rob Sam Who did films ruv deer and amnesia now? I haven't seen either of those films and I'm not very familiar with this filmmaker But this film is actually based off a 1942 Norwegian book with the same name of Lake of Death Obviously, it's not Lake of Death It's whatever that is in Norwegian and I will say that for me one of the big issues with this film is well It's not a big issue. It's a small issue actually But one of the things that keeps popping into my head that kind of bothers me about the film is the fact that it's called Lake of Death I feel like they should have picked a different title for it at least in in English I don't know what the title is in Norwegian because it might translate a little bit differently in Norwegian Because this film the way it looks and the way it's executed is kind of an eloquent film And it's what people may consider somewhat elevated horror. I don't really like using that term because Horror is horror, you know, there's there's no like real elevated But you know, some people might consider it somewhat that way. So just saying putting that out there, but so The fact that it's kind of like a brash title Lake of Death, which kind of insinuates maybe something like a slasher It's just something like straightforward and not very Nuanced like that's what it says to me And it that's so the title kind of mismatches what the film is because the film is very technically good very technically good It looks visually stunning and there are certain sequences that are just Amazingly executed their their visual masterpieces in a way And it seems a lot of the times like this is kind of like a higher budget film That's how it plays to me and when it starts off. It definitely seems like a higher budget film One of the biggest things being the score to this is Outstandingly good and it really gives you that air of like a big studio film So the fact that it is a lower budget film Well, I mean it may have been higher budget though because with these shutter originals a lot of times Like they give them money but a lot of other countries I don't know if Norway's this way or not But a lot of other countries will actually have grants that they'll give where they will fund or put in a portion of the funds for You know filmmakers from that country, so they could have had a higher budget Then you know normal shutter originals or a shutter original equivalent in the United States So I don't know what their budget was like, but it looks like a higher budget film And that's one of the cool things about it that I really appreciate And like I said that score is phenomenal. It's so good cinematography is wonderful The directing is very good. The acting is really good, too There weren't any times in it where I felt taken out of it because the acting was bad or had any lines That didn't match up or anything. Everyone did a really good job with it. So But I will say for me. This isn't like a oh my god. This film is amazing. I love it so much I do feel like the end of it fell flat for me The beginning is a great setup It keeps you relatively engaged throughout even though there are a lot of moments that kind of drag a little bit now there will It overall feels like it kind of drags and it's an hour and a half But they do a pretty good job at the same time of kind of sprinkling in these little moments of like Something that's kind of like a jump scare or something that's just kind of like creepy imagery That gives you the idea that there's something going on or something sinister kind of around the corner And that kind of brings you back in it pulls you back in like right when you get into a scene where it seems like it's starting to drag It's starting to get a little stagnant. I'm losing a little bit of interest They'll pop in one of those things and then it just kind of pulls your attention back in so Ideally it'd be great if you didn't have it feeling like it was dragging at all But if it is going to feel like it drags at parts at least they have those things sprinkled throughout to kind of pull You right back in now that said it keeps you relatively engaged for that reason But the end to me wasn't a great payoff. It was fine But that's how I felt like that's what I felt like I felt like they built it up really well in the beginning And then there was enough interest going into the end that I wanted a lot more from the end so You know, it just kind of felt like it whimpered where it should have kind of Had a very strong finish to it and I don't know And this goes back to like I was saying earlier like this is just my opinion How I experienced the film some people out there may see the end and be like wow I thought the the end was outstanding You know it really spoke to me and there are things in this film that you know Like thematically and subtext wise really do speak to me that I like and I'll talk about a little in a little bit but yeah But the short synopsis of this basically without giving anything away obviously is a woman who um Spends time at this lake lake of death obviously She spends time at this lake with her brother And there's a pass there that you end up learning about you know the upbringing of she and her brother And um, she ends up leaving him one day for a guy and then her brother goes missing Well a year later She and some friends return to the lake for you know, just just kind of spend some time there and then It's a horror movie. So then things happen, but that's where I'll I'll stop with the short synopsis. So uh, yeah, but um It gives you the idea with the way that it starts like with the music and and the really nice cinematography and everything It gives you the idea that it's going to be a deeper film It's going to be more kind of artistic in the way it is and it is like I think there's a lot of you know deeper stuff going on there that the filmmaker intended but In it it also is very artistic looking very artistic looking One of the things I love most about the film is that the camera work is really really cool It kind of like expands on the scenes in a way where a lot of the times in film You it'll be the camera is very fixed, you know, it'll have someone in the frame And it'll either stay there or it'll kind of like move around a little bit with them. Um, or you know backwards and forwards But this you know, they do a lot of movement with the camera and it it feels like for that reason It opens the scene up a lot more for the audience to kind of see more It makes it feel to the audience member like you're experiencing more of what's actually there and what's going on with it It makes it more immersive and more engaging and I really really like that with the camera work It's very interesting the way they do that and it's very fluid too. So I love all the movements that they have with it. It just kind of It's really cool. Um, so yeah So like I was saying, you know, like the technical stuff with this film directing acting cinematography Score like all that stuff. I think is really good really top notch It's just the script writing and the the story overall It just kind of like fell flat for me at some point and those moments, you know Going back to the script writing basically of you know, having those times where it feels like it's dragging Like you're losing interest a little bit, but then getting pulled back in so You know Just saying So there's a vague and a mysterious backstory that ends up actually getting thrown out very early in there And there's also an idea that gets thrown out too. It's a I'm not going to say exactly what it is because it might you know, if you then watch the film it might you know, just stay in your mind, but I'll I'll see if you know, see if it stays in your mind, but I will just give you a hint It is a two word concept that is introduced by one of the characters that is also The name of a Dario Argento film So if you actually want to know you can figure that out based off of what I've said, but I would say just go into it, you know Clean slate and just see see what you think because that thing is said and that kind of stuck in my head And I think it's kind of meant to do that for you And if you keep thinking about that and while you're experiencing the movie It kind of does play on a bit of a different level which is interesting So I like that aspect of it They also introduce a lot of stuff about Kind of myths and folklore early on in the film and I thought that was going to have It has a place in the film, but I thought it was going to have even more in the film Or if they could have done it a different way and that kind of goes more again to the way the film ended Being a little bit of a letdown for me. So Um Let me see if I got Yeah, I wrote down that it feels very visually inspired going back to kind of the cinematography and the way that camera work is And the directing and everything it seems very inspired This is kind of one of those films that people might point to and instead of saying director They might save this person kind of more of an auteur Which is kind of someone who's a little more stylistic a little more artsy in the way that they do films So based off of seeing this and and all the technical stuff I liked I would like to see this writer director do something else as well Maybe even with a much larger budget would be very interesting to see what would happen Or you know, maybe in a situation where you get someone who's a very excellent script writer with a really cool concept I think this director could just knock whatever Out of the park as long as it's a super strong script with a really good story So I would just love to see that Um, I like that in the end You actually get a scene that expands upon a scene that's in the beginning of the film Now once again, I'm not going to say what that is or anything But and I'm not going to say in what way it expands on it But that's a cool concept of kind of laying a little bit of the tracks early on in the film And then when you think that that's kind of just okay like that that's just done like you got through what you needed To at that point bringing it back in the end and revisiting and saying, you know Here's that same thing, but here's a little more of it And now it has a very different context to it. So that's interesting um There are a lot of offhand references baited this film that I found were fun to a lot of Horror films that are kind of considered nowadays like horror classics not all of them are super old, but um Horror classics in different ways But uh, that's just fun as you know being a horror nerd who's seen a lot of these horror films You know going through a film like this and and they just kind of get dropped randomly here and there and you're just like Oh, cool. They just reference that film. That's pretty awesome. So you know Things nerds like me like So I feel like this film actually one of the things it really does touch on at its core Is addressing trauma and loss and how Things like that definitely echo throughout your life and how they can echo throughout your life And this is something that actually gets covered in horror a lot trauma and loss It is covered a lot a lot a lot in horror Um, and I feel like a lot of that's kind of inspired by people like steven king because steven king writes about trauma and loss a ton So, you know, obviously it's not just him But he is a very strong voice in horror and has been for quite some time But this is just another one of those films. I feel like addresses that, you know, so it's not super Crazy for this to be, you know A an underlying theme because it happens a lot in film But I like that it's something that keeps coming up in horror because I think it's It's something that everyone does deal with at some point in their life And it makes it very relatable for that reason and even if someone hasn't already experienced something like that Knowing that like you will experience something like that. It's a very human thing Um, there's also a question of nature versus nurture in this film Which is very very interesting, especially for me because I did um, I have a master's degree in geography and environmental planning Kind of minus the environmental planning portion. I actually um Did my focus on like things like political geography cultural geography food geography, you know, like every every aspect of geography That's not just like maps basically and like physical structures and stuff like that. So, um It's very interesting from that standpoint because in in that realm of academic geography We were always said never try to tackle The argument of nature versus nurture like what actually shapes a person more is it the you know The nature they're born with and the nature around them or is it the nurture and how they're brought up and all that type of stuff So I feel like this film kind of touches on a little bit of that. It's not on the surface It's something you kind of have to think about a little bit more On a deeper level with what's going on between characters and around them So if you watch it through that lens, it it is kind of interesting. So yeah Um, but honestly, that's kind of all I have to say about the film I'm very interested to see what other people think about this film. So put your comments down there Um, I think this is the very first norwegian Film that shutters had on their service. So that's cool. Um, I'm always down to watch foreign films. Um, because A lot of interesting things and the cultures are different. So the film's kind of play a little differently sometimes too Which is cool. So anyway, uh, so out of five stars with half stars in play Uh, I was gonna give this a two and a half because I'm very much in the middle with it But because the technical components are so good, I'm gonna bump it up to a three I do feel comfortable giving it a three there But like I said, you know, you may experience it differently. Maybe you like it less Maybe you like it a lot more. I don't know but please tell me about that Um, but enjoy, you know, I enjoyed watching it once not one I'd want to go back to but I enjoyed watching it once But uh, do me a quick favor hit that subscribe button If you like any review videos I do or any videos on my on my channel because that's your way to repay me I'm not making money doing this or anything. So if you take that quick second hit that subscribe It means a lot to me. 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