Finland, 2016
Review:
JA Kerswell
An excellent take on the teen slasher genre, LAKE BODOM twists and turns throughout its running time and treads an increasingly dark path. Four teenagers head to the remote, lakeside site of an unsolved murder from many years before. Once there, secrets unravel and they discover someone else lurks in the dark across the water. Thrilling, unpredictable and inspired by true life events.
Elias (Mikael Gabriel) and his sometime friend Atte (Santeri Helinheimo Mäntylä) persuade two classmates Ida (Nelly Hirst-Gee) and Nora (Mimosa Willamo) to join them for an overnight camping trip. Atte is obsessed with true crime; specifically the murders of a group of teenagers, who were stabbed to death in their tent on the shores of Lake Bodom back in 1960. The killer was never caught. His obsession goes as far as to have sourced the exact same swimming costumes the girls who were murdered were wearing. Although Elias does not seem as enthused, Atte is intent on recreating the murder scene to test his theory as to who was responsible.
Fearing that Nora and Ida won’t go, the boys hide their true motivation from them. Ida is still recovering from a stalking incident, where compromising nude photos were supposedly taken after her drink was spiked at a party. Nora convinces her that she has to stop hiding from her peers and this weekend will be a good start.
After a long drive and hike, the group arrives at Lake Bodom where Atte reveals his true intentions. Only to be surprised at how unfazed Nora and Ida are at being at the remote location of a grisly and infamous murder. Although, Ida is spooked to see a flashlight moving on the other side of the lake meaning that they are not alone in the woods. Atte is further disappointed that the others are more interested in drinking and getting high than partaking in his murder reenactment. However, before the night is over real blood is spilled once again on the shores of Lake Bodom …
LAKE BODOM works best if you know no more than this basic setup. The film - whilst staying true to its subgenre roots - throws out more than a handful of curveballs; both subverting and the satisfying expectations. Once it gets going, it is fast-paced and often gruesome. No more so than with a most unconventional car chase through the backroads of the woods. Thematically and visually it gets darker and darker as it goes, but never becomes unremittingly grim. Admittedly it does get a little far-fetched at times and a few things stretch credulity - like what teenager goes to the woods without a cell phone? And why would you not wear a seatbelt during a high-speed car chase - especially after surviving one crash? Still, these are minor quibbles - and who doesn't prefer their slasher movies to go over the top rather than be routine? The film also boasts gorgeous teal-and-orange cinematography that captures the chilly beauty of the setting. It obviously had a decent budget and it shows.
Both thematically and visually LAKE BODOM can’t help but recall FRIDAY THE 13TH (1980), THE BURNING (1981) and other camp/woods slashers from the early 80s. However, a better comparison might be SCREAM (1996), as it shares a somewhat meta approach - albeit in different ways. The film opens stating that it was inspired by true life events that happened in 1960. Referring to Finland’s most infamous murder case, where three teenagers were murdered (and another injured) during an early morning attack on their campsite - where their assailant slashed at them through their tent. It remains unsolved and many theories over the years have emerged as to who the killer was.
Although the actual Lake Bodom is in Finland, the film didn’t use the real location as a backdrop (it was actually shot in Estonia). LAKE BODOM attracted some good reviews - with some comparing it favourably to Alexandre Aja’s exemplary French slasher HAUTE TENSION (2003). It was even picked to appear at a special showing at Cannes Film Festival (a rarity for a horror film). It was a minor hit at cinemas in Finland and seemed to have inspired ISLAND OF DOOM (2023), a much inferior Finnish slasher movie. It is also one of the few Finnish horror movies to receive distribution overseas and has recently been playing on Shudder.
Once it clicks into gear, LAKE BODOM
is a wild ride, even if the plot doesn’t quite hold up to scrutiny in retrospect.
BODY COUNT 3:
Female 1 / Male 2
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