★ 6 / 10
We're on to entry number 4 in Year
Theron R
We're on to entry number 4 in Year 2 of the Afterdark Horrorfest, and while I've seen 6 of the 8 entries of year 2 (technically 9 if you want to count…
We're on to entry number 4 in Year 2 of the Afterdark Horrorfest, and while I've seen 6 of the 8 entries of year 2 (technically 9 if you want to count Frontiers), the next film up, Lake Dead, just so happens to be one of the films I hadn't yet seen.
Now while I hadn't seen Lake Dead, I do remember always seeing rentals coming back in at Blockbuster for it. Now I couldn't tell you whether that was because of word going around that the film was good or because the DVD cover does look creepy and a bunch of people rented it just hoping it would be good, honestly I'd have to think it was the latter, especially as I think I went out of my way to avoid it. In 2007, I was all about creature features and slashers, and going off nothing except the look of the DVD case, I think I assumed that Lake Dead was a ghost story and those have never really done much for me. Watching it for the 1st time now, Lake Dead is absolutely my kind of movie, BUT I still don't think I would have appreciated it as much watching it back in 2007.
After the passing of their grandfather, three sisters (Kelsey Crane, Kelsey Weeden, Tara Gerard) inherit a motel resting on the edge of what seems to be a quiet peaceful lakeside community. Wanting a chance to check out their new property, the sisters and their friends drive up for a weekend to check it out, they'll soon find out though that once you check in to Lake Dead, there's no checking out.
The most obvious thing standing out about Lake Dead is the production quality, I'm never going to hit anything other than big budget blockbusters for looking cheaply made because they obviously have the money to make sure they never look like that, but it's worth noting that Lake Dead very much LOOKS like an independent film. I realize all of these movies were independently made, but the majority of them up to now still look like they fit right at home in theaters, Lake Dead just doesn't share that same look and that will absolutely turn off quite a lot of viewers looking for a more polished experience.
If you can ignore the unpolished look, then you're actually in for a fun time, as Writer Daniel P Coughlin's story invokes a lot of horror franchises that you've at least seen one entry for. The Hills Have Eyes, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Wrong Turn, Deliverance, all fantastic franchises that share more than a few similarities, it's clear that Coughlin has watched most if not all of those well enough to pull some of the more standout elements of them. There's nothing wrong with that, horror tends to copy itself all the time, and getting completely new and unique ideas is actually more rare than you might think, so Lake Dead isn't by any means annoying for being a low budget copy of some much better films, but it's definitely noticeable.
Meanwhile director George Bessudo is able to bring out some of the most explicit gore we've seen in the festival thus far, the very first kill involving an axe, an iron bar, and some ankles, Lake Dead looks to elevate a simple script with high quality blood and guts. Usually films with this kind of budget end up making any representation of blood and death a bit more on the cheesy side, yet Lake Dead's death scenes are actually some of the best parts of the film.
Make no mistake, while I enjoyed Lake Dead, there are far better films out there that tell a better version of this story, but are they as fun as Lake Dead is? Some of the charm of the film is that it seems that the Director and the Cast understood the film that they were making, it's a 2am B Movie that you turn on after getting home from a night out of a few drinks and have some taco bell waiting. It's not going to revolutionize anything or become a horror favorite, but it offers just enough to set itself apart from some of the less interesting entries of the festival thus far.
Current Rankings:
The Deaths of Ian Stone – 4
Lake Dead - 3
Borderland – 2
Crazy Eights – 2
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