Svartsjön

Swedish drama 'Black Lake' combines the vibe of 'The Blair Witch Project' with a Mexican standoff, as a group of young people gradually lose it in an isolated winter resort, driven mad by strange (and possibly supernatural) events. Unfortunately, the story defies logic: any normal person would just run away once people start dying, instead the protagonists spend the entire drama venturing on their own into dark cellars where their friends have already been killed, with predictably awful results. By the end, I barely understood the plot, but each episode felt like a repeat of its predecessor. In conclusion: not one of the best Scandi-dramas.

Right from the start season 1 was very mysterious and scary. Not always logical, but very exciting nevertheless. I loved the enchanting winter scenery. Season 1 gets a rate from me of 8.

Season 2 was very boring. Also the sect / commune was very annoying. After 3 episodes it still did not capture our attention, so we skipped the rest. Season 2 gets a rate from me of 2.

Biggest load of rubbish I've watched in ages. Never got better. Totally artificial. Not possible to suspend disbelief at any time in this poor show. Poor script and ludicrous plot. As much as the story line has some credibility it fell into nonsense. It could not be taken remotely seriously.

When a group of good looking 20 something Swedes head off for a skiing holiday to a remote ski lodge, it turns out that more than Skiing, Schnapps and Sex are on the agenda. Unknown to them twenty years previously a family staying at the lodge had been brutally murdered. This of course means strange things start to happen. Lights flicker on and off books fly off shelves and one by one the group start acting strangely. All this and throw in a creepy caretaker and a cellar that no one will dare enter, and you have an above average thriller set in the stunning Swedish mountains. 7/10

Had the makings of a thriller but poor writing let it down. None of the characters had any redeeming characteristics and behaved irrationally throughout. This sort of film will work as a supernatural thriller, or as one that appears to be, but turns out to have rational explanations; but if you try to have both, as this film did, it doesn't work. Poor example of what Scandie drama can be.