Lake Dead (2007) Reviews

• Family Tradition

  claudio_carvalho2008-05-11

  The Lake sisters - Brielle (Kelsey Crane), Kelly (Kelsey Wedeen) and their step-sister Samantha (Tara Gerard) - receive a surprising inheritance from their unknown grandfather that has just deceased. Brielle and Kelly join a group of friends and travel in a RV to visit the Lake Motel and decide what to do with the property. Sooner they finds that their unknown relatives are deranged psychos. "Lake Dead" is an average slasher B-movie and has an unoriginal story that I have seen many times: "The Hills Have Eyes", "Wrong Turn", I can not count many movies with stories similar to the original "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" plus a collection of clichés of the genre (naked women, friends surrounded and under siege by psychos etc.). Even the incestuous relationship among relatives is not original - "Timber Falls" is better and better. But entertains, and my vote is six. Title (Brazil): "Lago da Morte" ("Lake of the Death")

  More

• Cliché The Movie Part 77: This time it rips off itself

  doc66992008-07-18

  Wow. This movie is painful. Unfortunately, the best performance comes from the former Reality TV star. The acting is awful. I kept getting the feeling that this movie was made by a few guys who wanted to get some chicks naked, play with guns, and screw around with fake blood. This movie is what gives the horror genre such a bad stigma. It strives to be camp, but only succeeds at being terrible. To make matters worse it's completely unoriginal. The guys that made this seemed like they just wanted to recreate some of their favorite slasher horror scenes, then just threw a couple of rape scenes in for that extra shock factor. I'm two into 2007 Horrorfest, and I have yet to be impressed. Maybe they changed judges because this movie is nothing compared to any of 2006 8 films. Don't watch this movie, it may ruin your day.

  More

• I Ain't Going Fishin'

  jamhorner2007-11-11

  I would first like to open this review by stating one of the funniest and best lines out of the entire movie: "That's how you f***k, family." With that out of the way, this was an interesting film that caught me off guard. I expected a movie that was worse than Ghost Lake or Zombie Lake. Boy I couldn't be further from the truth. This movie is about three four sisters who inherit the Lake Hotel from there newly found grandfather, their dad did not tell them about him for "security" reasons, and the sisters soon realize that their grandfather was murdered and that there are these men who are trying to kill them. I will say that this movie had some pretty okay acting and the scares somewhat there. You'll also see that this movie was influence by some earlier movies that had the same premise. Let me get started by stating that story was heavily influence by a warm house blend of Wrong Turn, The Hills Have Eyes, "Home" from the X-Files and the Texas Chainsaw. You'll notice why it incorporates these films because of two main concepts presented in this film. One being deformed brothers, who wear jumpsuits, running around and murdering/raping teenagers (Wrong Turn, Hills, Home) and secondly the biggest concept I will not say since it involves a twist ending but that ideas includes movie like Texas Chainsaw and Hills. The storyline was somewhat tiring, you figure that these teens have to be beautiful people with hot bodies or this would never work, furthermore, they have to inherit a house or hotel that comes with killers. Kind of tiring. What turns this already milked story into original is the twist and subtext of the movie, which I will not say. It can become over the top and points and even to melodramatic. I could compare this movie to an A&E special or Cold Case reenactment gone horribly wrong, but than I would contradict myself, since I obviously like this movie. That acting was good, but in parts. The beginning of the movie seemed like it was an afternoon soap opera like General Hospital. This being that the dialogue seemed scripted and painfully dramatic. Malea Richardson, who plays the foul-mouthed drunk sister, who, for my taste, swore too much. In one short scene she says about 10 F bombs, and even for a movie of this caliber, it was unnecessary. There were some okay jokes and at points the teens reacted to minor details as being life threatening, even before they got to the lake. Plus there is a random unnecessary drug scene and an unwanted sex scene. However, when the first murder takes place, that's when his TBS drama turns into a Fright Night. When the sisters begin to display real emotion, when the male character becomes the hero and villains become more real and into their characters. Half of the movie was okay acting and the other half was great horror acting. Scares were not big in this movie, but when they did appear, it was okay. The parts where those 6ft brutes blast down camper doors and appear out of nowhere and asphyxiate their victims where a bit scary, and I admit that I jumped here or there. Of course I saw this in a darkened theater during Horror Fest. What was scary was not only just those deformed Billy brothers but the family in which they come from, again I will not say since this is a twist and I don't want to ruin it, but that realization is far more disturbing than those evil twins. There is a point when the killer pickaxes a girl in the ear and she cries blood as her eye turns red, yeah, a great example of classic slasher horror. Overall, this movie was good for what it was worth, in fact, I sort of like this movie. There were some over dramatic parts to it, the scares where okay, there was great twist and a disturbing subtext, the actors where okay in the first half and excellent in the last half and the story seems to keep you on the edge. Despite that it was a low budget and that this style had been done and redone so many times, it was okay. I would recommend this movie to horror fans since this is a newbie of horror and I think that it should be given a chance. I like it, and again, I wish I could tell more but I would be giving away too much sensitive information.

  More

• Can I Please Have These 90 Minutes Back?

  WizardOfGore2007-11-12

  I look forward to Horrorfest each year, and I always expect a few clunkers in the group, but this one was truly awful. You can see the plot points coming a mile away, and it clearly plays to the teenage T&A crowd. While I don't mind a dose of that in a movie, the horror elements also have to be there for me to enjoy the flick, and in this case, there is just nothing there. The deaths are a bit creative but, again, nothing that hasn't been done 100 time already. Also, there are enough plot holes to drive a truck through, and a few of the scenes and lines had the audience laughing out loud. Wait for them to show it on TNT.

  More

• nothing new but it delivered suspense

  trashgang2011-11-02

  I enjoyed this flick although many hate it. Don't think that you are going to see something original. It does look sometimes like Texas Chainsaw Massacre or Wrong Turn or other hillbillies gone mad flicks but it worked out fine for me. George Bessudo the director only made two flicks so far, both horror, Farmhouse(2008) and this one a year earlier. So having in mind that it was his first attempt he did really well. It was also Daniel P. Coughlin first writing and I guess they both know their stuff. It's a mediocre flick which have to get it from the suspense built. The acting was okay and you do get involved with the sisters. Naturally with horror becoming mainstream they had to add something for the youngsters so there is a bit of gratuitous nudity in it. We have the pis*ed and proud sister walking around in her underwear and showing off to her sister's boyfriend. We have a love scene were nothing is revealed although they are naked but one scene in the woods do has it's gratuitous nudity. So with the nudity hanging over the beginning and POV shots from the killer it was a bit of going back memory lane. I dare to say that it reminded me of the old horrors from the eighties. It will never be a classic, for that reason their are to many rip-offs of other horrors like I mentioned before. There are a few killings going on and a few shots aren't for the squeamish. You will figure it out for yourself which one they are. It's a bit low on the red stuff but as I said, the suspense gives you enough thrills to watch this flick. Another flick in the hillbillies look-a-like going berserk with a little twist. It's one you can watch with two pints of lager and a packet of crisps. Gore 3/5 Nudity 1,5/5 Story 3/5 Effects 3/5 Comedy 0/5

  More