De dødes tjern

This wonderfully shot (and short), powerful film is a lost horror gem. The film focuses on a group of friends that travel to the woods. It all goes a bit terrifying as a brother is missing, people start sleepwalking, and the truth mixes with superstition. The film is quite dialog heavy in explaining itself, as we have a hypnotist that refuses to believe in ghosts. The scenes build up with a kind of quiet charm, and never fully reveal themselves, allowing our thoughts to intertwine with how the characters see it. The audience is really included in this film, with a lot of moments seeming as though the characters are trying to persuade us onto their side.

Don't let the previous poster scare (no pun intended) you away from seeing this film. It has a very good cast made up of seasoned Norwegian actors (including the writer himself, Andre Bjerke), and the plot is very good acted out. Now, it would be really unfair to compare Norwegian films made in the 1950's with their Hollywood counterparts then and now - they were made on very tight budgets and usually played for a limited audience. However, this film (made in creepy black and white) has some outstanding scenes that made me (at least) really very uneasy. It's really a very good attempt to make an exiting movie out of a brilliant psychological thriller novel. I think it still - even by today's standard - has a very high entertainment value, just as it had about 50 years ago. No CGI effects here - just good, solid acting!

This is a fine effort in the horror/thriller genre. Coming out in 1958 and from Norway you wouldn't think so but...it works...trust me.

First off, the acting in the first say...15 minutes or so...is pretty lame. I guess it's due to the "un-hollywood" like skills of the actors but after it dissipates, the rest of the story/film is a mystery until the end.

Basic premise is that 6 friends go to a cabin at a remote lake to meet up with one of their brothers to relax and have a good time. Turns out the lake they go to has a bad history and the rest of the film we learn about it's secrets. We also learn about most of the friends who show up while they sit a debate where the missing brother has gone or if he's dead or not. It's mostly a talky all the way until the end but it really does grab your attention. You may think of a Friday the 13th feel to this but what you won't get is blood and gore. What you do get is an intricate story that hold you to the couch right until the end.

This one is considered one of the top 5 Norwegian films made..and I can see why. If you give this one a chance you'll see why also.

This mystery is classified as horror because of the supernatural elements, a century old ghost story centered upon the cabin in the woods where this group of people came to stay with its missing owner. I won't ruin it with spoilers, but I saw this as a classic whodunit with a paranormal element. Filmed in glorious B&W which adds to the starkness, this film has a couple of spicy elements which must have been quite scandalous in its days: the big reveal about the twins and the revealing, see-through neglegee Liljan, the female twin wears. It is more cozy now, with an endearing group growing more suspicious of each other as the events unfold. This will take you back, yet with a fresh take on where the whodunit and horror genres meet.

"Lake of the Dead" is the story of a six young friends who travel from Oslo to Østerdalen in order to spend a few relaxing days in a cabin deep in the woods.Once they arrive,the brother(who had gone to the cabin some time before)of one of the women appears to have disappeared.A local legend claims that a one-legged man who died 100 years ago still roams the woods and hypnotizes people to drown themselves in a small lake.He murdered his sister and her lover,then drowned himself in the dark waters.Despite its age "Lake of the Dead" still managed to creep me out.The mystery of the lake is interesting and the climax is truly creepy.There is an eerie legend,a one-legged crow and the lake itself that easily could have been a murderer.The film has some striking similarities to Sam Raimi's "The Evil Dead",but I strongly doubt that Raimi has seen it.It's a crying shame that "Lake of the Dead" is so unknown and still unreleased on DVD.9 out of 10.