User Reviews

It's been a long time since I've seen this film, during the time when I still didn't bother to rate and review every Horror film I watch. Lately I've been re-watching some of those I liked especially, but as for Eden Like - I'll pass. Not because it isn't good, but because nobody in their right mind would define it as "fun to watch", that much I do remember.

However, what I remember most vividly is my utter sense of frustration, disgust and despair with humanity. Throughout the film I've kept feeling the urge to be there, so I could knock some hard painful sense into those no good hoodlums, and their sad excuse for parents! Very much like this decade's streak of "torture porn", Eden Lake plays on these emotions in the audience. Pity for the victim, rage against the assailants, and despair/helplessness.

Acting and cinematography are good enough, nothing special worth mentioning as far as I can remember (bear in mind it's been a while), but the story and some of the scenes are what sticks with you afterwords. Personally, I can't call the sensations I get out of watching these kinds of films "fun", but they are definitely, in a way, rewarding. Eden Lake isn't easy to watch, and seeing as how this is obviously its goal - it's a success. My relatively low rate is only on account of my personal experience with it.

Disturbing and savage film. Not an easy viewing experience. The ending is frustrating and infuriating.

I can't remember the last time a film evoked such raw emotions in me. I'm literally teared up and shaking - from anger, pain, frustration and disbelief. Watching this film is an experience more than words can describe, it plays on pure emotion. You're sucked into the whole atmosphere, to the characters - both the good and the bad -, and it really eats you up and leaves you with this bundle of emotions that catch you off guard and in the end, leave you empty-handed.

I'm sorry for not being very precise about the plot and the characters, but I simply can't write an ordinary "this film opens with..." review, the experience was just too much.

I highly recommend it, but not for the weak-hearted.

Trust me, I live here. This movie is the complete opposite of the likes of Love Actually, Four Weddings etc., and it is far more representative of the reality here. It's not a perfect film, and it's a grim, difficult watch, but it's extremely well and convincingly acted, and it had me on the edge of my seat. Worth watching, and to those in other parts of the world who might think it's all Royal weddings and tourist attractions here, this might open your eyes to how it really is.

Eden Lake (2008)

*** (out of 4)

Brutal and intense thriller has a man (Michael Fassbender) taking his girlfriend (Kelly Reilly) to Eden Lake for a weekend getaway but their peaceful time turns to terror when they encounter a group of young kids who decide to stalk and try to kill them. EDEN LAKE comes from writer-director James Watkins and there's no question that the story is far from original but I say you can repeat a story as many times as you want as long as there's someone talented to make everything work. Watkins certainly makes for a very intense movie and I think what he does best is make you feel as if you're watching real people in a real situation. What makes the film so creepy is the fact that you really do feel as if you're watching this stuff happen to real person and the violence is just so strange and needless that it packs even more of a punch. The film is certainly in the same genre as THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT, DELIVERANCE and STRAW DOGS but what this film also goes for the recent wave of "torture" movies. The violence here doesn't happen often but when it does its done in such a graphic way that you can't help but feel it. Each time a blade hits one of our leads it really does feel as if you're also getting slashed. The director's screenplay makes the right choice is letting us get to know the leads so that way we can feel for them and it really makes us want to see them get out of this mess. Both Reilly and Fassbender are very believable in their parts as are the actors playing the thugs. Reilly really makes for a very strong lead even when the screenplay falls short and leaves her with a few dumb decisions. As intense as the movie is I must say that I felt cheated by the ending. I'm not going to give anything away but the big twist is just horrible and it's not a bit believable. I'd also argue that the kid's lack of a motive was another thing that bothered me. I can believe one or two sickos but I think it goes a bit over-the-top and more of a reason would have helped things. With that said, EDEN LAKE certainly delivers and while it's not going to be for everyone if you do enjoy this type of thing then it's a must see.

This movie is a great representation of English teens that you might encounter almost anywhere around the country. This is a disturbingly true and accurate movie with logical events.

Oh my, this was one hell of a ride! It has everything I yearn from a horror movie. It's dark, bloody, depressing, somewhat realistic and oh, the ending, the ending. This is the second best British horror movie I have seen. The best was Dog Soldiers. The young actors do a good job depicting the variety of feelings from anger to horror to despair and the two lead actors are brilliant. It is a knee deep in doom all the way to the end. A few minor logic problems but you'll get over it, they don't ruin the mood at all.

I have to praise the script because it works in the boundaries of the real world and does not go over the top in any scene, and I know some may disagree in this but I think you'll like it never the less.

All in all, it is good and it is for you if you truly like horror. But it is also a disturbing and brutal movie so not for the faint of heart. Enjoy.

This movie is not for the faint of heart.

Others have called it bleak, brutal, and depressing. And it is. I ignored all that and went in thinking it'd be another British neo-horror flick like The Descent, but boy was I wrong. Now, don't misunderstand me: it is a horror movie but in the most literal meaning of the term. The events in this film are horrific, and it leaves you feeling horrible at the end. To tell you why would require spoilers-and I won't do that-but you might want to spoil it for yourself to save some heartache. Let me just say it doesn't have a happy ending. You can thank me for that warning later.

I get why the rating is relatively low, and I don't begrudge anyone their low scores. It is not a movie for everyone and isn't trying to be. I can't say I liked it or enjoyed watching it, but films so rarely leave me palpably affected. I had no choice but to give it a higher score. I'll probably never watch it again. If you watch it, I recommend having a collection of funny cat videos on standby. But the movie is excellent. Bleak, brutal, and depressing for sure, but excellent.

Jenny and her boyfriend Steve take trip out to a remote lake for a romantic weekend. Once there they relax on the waterfront only to have their idyllic peace shattered by a group of unruly youths. Steve, who has reasons for wanting this to be the perfect weekend, approaches the youths with a polite request for them to tone down their behaviour, what he gets is pure ignorant hostility, but it is merely the start of what will become terror unbound.

Eden Lake quite literally could have come from the pages of the tabloid newspapers that land on the doorsteps daily of millions of homes in Great Britain. Such is the state that the British Isles has got itself into with the youth of today, Eden Lake may well be an exploitation picture, but it's also one of the most astutely tuned into the times films to have come out of Britain for many a year. Interesting that writer/director James Watkins has said that he wrote Eden Lake long before the depressing number of incidents involving knife crimes started making front page news, but what he has failed to mention is that the incidents, and the unruly violence perpetrated by Britain's youth, has been escalating since the early 1990s. So with that, it actually makes Watkins film a critically cautionary tale about bad parenting and class hatred, this in spite of some foolish British critics claiming that Eden Lake is merely fuelling generation wars, no it isn't! It's just not sticking its head in the sand is all.

Anyway, the film is excellent, the sub-genre that encompasses your every day folk coming under attack from the unruly is hardly a new thing, think Straw Dogs, Hills Have Eyes, Deliverance, Them and etc, but Eden Lake manages to homage the best of those influences whilst adding impetus with gritty realism and darkly disturbing acts of violence. Kelly Reilly and Michael Fassbender are Jenny and Steve respectively, both actors are tremendous and thankfully it looks like both of them wont be short of work in the next few years. But really it's with the young actors that Eden Lake leaves it's indelible mark. Shane Meadows muse Thomas Turgoose {This Is England & Somers Town} plays, what's for him, a restrained role, but it's highly effective, yet ultimately all in the piece play second string to Jack O'Connell {also This Is England} as Brett, a horror creation {reality} that outstrips the Krueger's and Ghost Face's of this cinematic world, with O'Connell giving a terrifyingly great performance.

Eden Lake is not perfect, the usual exasperations that come with the genre still show their hands, why do that? Why didn't you do this? And on it goes, but really we will all be very very lucky to find a horror picture that ticks every box of the discerning viewer. Also it's fair to say that Eden Lake smacks of being a Descent clone in structure, yes it is {Watkins has interestingly written The Descent: Part 2}, but what is most evident about the parallels between the two great British pictures is that The Descent clearly has fake monsters invading the real people, Eden Lake has real everyday monsters that could well be in your neighbourhood, Brett may even be the kid going out with your daughter, or even be your own undisciplined son.............

10/10

This film could easily have just been some chavs bullying people, but it is much more then that. I have watched many horror/thriller films and they have rarely effected me the way this film did. From the beginning the mood is set of this extremely happy couple living in their bliss and as most of you will know before watching this the film is not about their happy relationship. The first thirty minutes of the film are more easy going then the rest, but still captivating. As the film continues it shocks you beyond belief, I expected gore but I didn't expect how the tone of the film would make me feel.

If you have an uneasy stomach or sometimes get emotional, prepare yourself for this film. It is gruesome but some scenes are a little too realistic which is what makes the film different. A lot of horror films similar to this lack realism so the audience cannot connect with the protagonist as easily, but Eden Lake has been made with a great deal of empathy for the couple and hate for the young kids. Seeing as there is a strong connection between audience and the characters there is a great deal of emotion involved which is unexpected, but this shows that the film has been made very well and that the actors do their job perfectly.

The young actors who play the chavs are fantastic, and i'm not going to say fantastic 'for their age' because they are truly talented actors regardless of age. Jack O'Connell plays the ring leader of the group Brett, and he really shines. Playing a merciless hateful character is not the easiest thing to do, but if you didn't know better you would think that is how he is in real life because he is just that good. I have been a big fan of Thomas Turgoose since he was in This is England because he is also a very talented and realistic actor and he doesn't disappoint in this film either, but he isn't in it as much as I would like. The other actors in the group are equally as talented. As for the couple they were perfectly cast and they have great chemistry, I have been a fan of Michael Fassbender (who plays boyfriend Steve) for a while but I had never really noticed Kelly Reilly before (who plays girlfriend Jenny) but she plays the character very well and hits the right emotions at the perfect time.

All in all the film draws you in, keeps you captivated, shocks you with the gore and blows you away with emotion. The best thing about it and what makes the movie special and better then most other similar films is just how real it is. You almost feel like this is happening to you, and their reactions are also real human reactions too. The film is truly great and one of the best of its genre, very impressive all around.

Eden Lake (2008) follows a couple who's romantic getaway is ruined by a gang of blood-thirsty youths. This movie is a very tense and horrifying thriller with some good acting. It is highly engaging although it follows a fairly basic structure and feels a bit safe at times.

The film really doesn't have many notable shots and the cinematography is quite lacklustre. There's no outstanding colour schemes and the camerawork is basic too. The lighting is ok, however it could've been improved as there are some scenes where I couldn't see what was happening.

The sound design is quite good, it's very subtle and manages to be fairly effective. The score itself really adds to the tension and builds up a thrilling atmosphere.

The film introduces us to our two lead characters well, they don't have much on-screen chemistry but this isn't a major issue. I cannot praise all the young actors who played the villains enough, they are genuinely horrifying and I despised their characters, this shows how brilliantly they did in their roles!

This movie is surprisingly disturbing, and packed full of very hard to watch scenes. I think the main thing that makes Eden Lake (2008) so terrifying is that it feels brutally realistic, and things like this genuinely do happen in the UK often!

Lastly, the film is consistently engaging and gripping to watch, building up the tension perfectly to a harrowing and shocking climax. It's fast paced and has a pretty basic structure, but pulls it off well.