Bone Lake

Rating 6/10

You’ve seen the setup before: people head off for an idyllic escape.  Maybe it’s a lakeside rental, a cabin in the woods, or even as guests in someone else’s home, only to find they’ve stepped into a nightmare.  From the terrors lurking under Barbarian‘s Airbnb to the artificial hospitality of Speak No Evil, to the cabin of The Evil Dead, or the cruel neighbors of Funny Games, vacations have a way of turning into traps.  Bone Lake plays in that same sandbox: strangers mixed with isolation, and mounting dread, but sprinkles in enough fresh twists to stake out its own territory.

Diego (Marco Pigossi) and Sage (Maddie Hasson) are a picture-perfect pair who travel to Bone Lake for a relaxing getaway.  Their plans are disrupted when another young, attractive couple, Will (Alex Roe) and Cin (Andra Nechita), show up claiming they’ve also rented the same mansion.  They all reluctantly agree to share the house.  Over time, Will and Cin’s unsettling demeanor creates anxiety between Diego and Sage.  Later, the opening of a couple of locked rooms reveals ominous contents.  Will and Cin’s manipulations escalate.  As the weekend unfolds, Diego and Sage must contend with their hosts’ uncomfortable conversations.  The fractures in their own relationship intensify.

Bone Lake has more on its mind than a straightforward horror tale at first.  Diego and Sage have been together since they were in college.  Their recent career choices have tested them: Diego has abandoned his job as a community-college English professor to fully devote himself to writing a novel.  Sage has put aside her freelance articles to take a steady editing job as the sole breadwinner.  Love still underlies their bond, but the shift in roles and financial pressure has taken a toll on their intimacy.  The accidental double-booking of the lake house introduces a devious mind game.  The sinister pair exploits Diego and Sage’s internal suspicions.  They push personal boundaries and engineer every situation to amplify jealousy and doubt.

The horror milieu is a way to explore the stress that can arise in a relationship.  Past mistakes come into view, introducing doubt and eroding trust.  Additionally, the feelings that linger when one partner forgoes their own ambitions to support the other’s goals are explored.  Compromises can introduce strain. It reflects the delicate balance of modern partnerships.  The film is tightly edited and paced at 94 minutes, using its sparse structure to deploy surprises.

The campy sensibility can be enjoyable, although it doesn’t always charm.  The opening immediately assaults the viewer with a naked couple sprinting through the forest pursued by an assailant with a crossbow.  Most of the movie isn’t like that.  Yet camp plays out more effectively once Will and Cin enter the story.  Alex Roe and Andra Nechita give intentionally exaggerated performances, offering sly insinuations that add an off-kilter energy.  Their intrusions keep the tension lively with their cerebral games.

The narrative dares to frame itself as both a thriller and a romance.  It has something to say about the insecurity of love in a world where partners make sacrifices and trust can be weaponized. Yet all this promise is undercut by the climax. I saw the hints of a subversive finale in which Diego and Sage might outsmart their captors.  Unfortunately, psychological warfare is not on the menu.  The film descends into a violent chase with an axe.  It’s a lamentable turn after so much witty repartee.  The account abandons an intellectual cat-and-mouse for visceral carnage.  The stinging commentary makes way for just another gory bloodbath.

10-04-25