When a couple goes to a remote lake for a romantic getaway, their quiet weekend is shattered by an aggressive group of kids. Rowdiness quickly turns to rage as the teens terrorize them, and ... Read allWhen a couple goes to a remote lake for a romantic getaway, their quiet weekend is shattered by an aggressive group of kids. Rowdiness quickly turns to rage as the teens terrorize them, and a weekend outing becomes a battle for survival.When a couple goes to a remote lake for a romantic getaway, their quiet weekend is shattered by an aggressive group of kids. Rowdiness quickly turns to rage as the teens terrorize them, and a weekend outing becomes a battle for survival.
- Awards
- 9 wins & 8 nominations total
Eliza Elkington
- Child in Classroom
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
I can't remember the last time a film evoked such raw emotions in me. I'm literally teared up and shaking - from anger, pain, frustration and disbelief. Watching this film is an experience more than words can describe, it plays on pure emotion. You're sucked into the whole atmosphere, to the characters - both the good and the bad -, and it really eats you up and leaves you with this bundle of emotions that catch you off guard and in the end, leave you empty-handed.
I'm sorry for not being very precise about the plot and the characters, but I simply can't write an ordinary "this film opens with..." review, the experience was just too much.
I highly recommend it, but not for the weak-hearted.
I'm sorry for not being very precise about the plot and the characters, but I simply can't write an ordinary "this film opens with..." review, the experience was just too much.
I highly recommend it, but not for the weak-hearted.
From start to finish this film is a masterclass in confronting our views on revenge and on how we choose which 'side' to be on in any given situation.
The two adult leads are almost immediately plunged into a nightmare where children have the upper hand and where respect for adults is thrown out of the window yet the adults still view the amoral, feral youth as children (at least initially).
Eden Lake plays as virtually a documentary of Britain in 2008 and as a film gives us a stark reflection of what is happening in this country today. The only difference being that Eden Lake takes place in the countryside while the real violence in the UK takes place on our city streets.
James Watkins has managed to create real tension, real suspense and some real terror in his directorial debut. So many UK horror films come with great expectations and so many fail, but with Eden Lake, Watkins has crafted a contemporary film that is instilled with the nastiness and vicious spirit of 70s/early 80s horror such as 'Last House on the Left'.
Disturbing, challenging, thought provoking and downright electrifying in places, this is one of the best horror films of the past few years and one of the best British films this decade.
The two adult leads are almost immediately plunged into a nightmare where children have the upper hand and where respect for adults is thrown out of the window yet the adults still view the amoral, feral youth as children (at least initially).
Eden Lake plays as virtually a documentary of Britain in 2008 and as a film gives us a stark reflection of what is happening in this country today. The only difference being that Eden Lake takes place in the countryside while the real violence in the UK takes place on our city streets.
James Watkins has managed to create real tension, real suspense and some real terror in his directorial debut. So many UK horror films come with great expectations and so many fail, but with Eden Lake, Watkins has crafted a contemporary film that is instilled with the nastiness and vicious spirit of 70s/early 80s horror such as 'Last House on the Left'.
Disturbing, challenging, thought provoking and downright electrifying in places, this is one of the best horror films of the past few years and one of the best British films this decade.
Thriller movie. A couple goes on a trip to a lake outside a small town, only not knowing that there is a well-known gang of minors in the area, whose leader has no moral barriers at all and is pushing everyone else to follow him or they will suffer the consequences. The character of the leader has also been created by the similar family environment. The whole town knows about this gang and its actions, but it's doing nothing. Because they're "just kids". "Just kids" who have no boundaries and make no difference to adult criminals. Unfortunately there are plenty of similar cases in the real world. Is there any justice for such criminals or they should be protected because they are "just kids"... A difficult survival film with very good acting, but it also shows a social problem, the juvenile criminals that will probably anger many people that watch this film.
Saw this at Frighfest08 London! Fantastic movie, visually looked great. Couple get harassed by local youths and one mans pride turns the situation into a living nightmare. Really good pacing right till the end, started a teeny weeny bit twee with the couple being just a bit too nice and laughing geekily but thats OK, as the rest was ACE! worth watching!!! little torture bit in it isn't too bad, i don't usually like torture films, this wasn't one of them as it was needed for the plot and done with some taste, the hoodie boys are brilliant, superb acting they were pretty believable actually, and the lead actress Jenny was good, end sequence is pretty CHILLING!- which is a rarity these days.
Trust me, I live here. This movie is the complete opposite of the likes of Love Actually, Four Weddings etc., and it is far more representative of the reality here. It's not a perfect film, and it's a grim, difficult watch, but it's extremely well and convincingly acted, and it had me on the edge of my seat. Worth watching, and to those in other parts of the world who might think it's all Royal weddings and tourist attractions here, this might open your eyes to how it really is.
Did you know
- TriviaShaun Dooley, who played Jon in this movie, has some experience with disruptive teens. He starred as Greg, an ASBO in the British Channel 4 drama Misfits (2009)
- GoofsWhen they crash against the tree and Steve gets stuck, you can see that there is no branch going through the car's window.
- Alternate versionsIn order to get the "Not under 18" rating from the FSK, the German video releases were cut approx. by 2 minutes. An uncut version was later made available in Germany with SPIO/JK approval. Only in 2022 was the uncut version granted a "Not under 18" rating following its deletion from the SPIO/JK index list.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Bad Movie Beatdown: Christmas Special: While She Was Out (2010)
- How long is Eden Lake?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $7,321
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $5,824
- Nov 2, 2008
- Gross worldwide
- $3,984,669
- Runtime1 hour 31 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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