Plot
Refusing to let anything spoil their romantic weekend break, a young couple confront a gang of loutish youths with terrifyingly brutal consequences.

Release Year: 2008

Rating: 6.9/10 (24,006 voted)

Director: James Watkins

Stars: Kelly Reilly, Michael Fassbender, Tara Ellis

Storyline
Nursery teacher Jenny and her boyfriend Steve, escape for a romantic weekend away. Steve, planning to propose, has found an idyllic setting: a remote lake enclosed by woodlands and seemingly deserted. The couple's peace is shattered when a gang of obnoxious kids encircles their campsite. Reveling in provoking the adults, the gang steals the couple's belongings and vandalizes their car leaving them completely stranded. When Steve confronts them, tempers flare and he suffers a shocking and violent attack. Fleeing for help, Jenny is subject to a brutal and relentless game of cat-and-mouse as she desperately tries to evade her young pursuers and find her way out of the woods.

Cast:
Kelly Reilly - Jenny
Michael Fassbender - Steve
Tara Ellis - Abi
Jack O'Connell - Brett
Finn Atkins - Paige
Jumayn Hunter - Mark
Thomas Turgoose - Cooper
James Burrows - Harry
Tom Gill - Ricky (as Thomas Gill)
Lorraine Bruce - Tanya
Shaun Dooley - Jon
James Gandhi - Adam
Bronson Webb - Reece
Lorraine Stanley - Nat
Rachel Gleeves - Mel (as Rachel Gleaves)

Taglines: A weekend by the lake, with views to die for.

Official Website: Official site [uk] |

Release Date: 12 September 2008

Filming Locations: Black Park Lake, Black Park, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Opening Weekend: £192,027 (UK) (14 September 2008) (184 Screens)

Gross: $5,824 (USA) (2 November 2008)

Runtime: 91 min

Goofs:
Continuity: During close-ups of Steve's hand tied up by barbed wires we can clearly see that his hand is soaked with blood. However, in the immediate scene after, where he managed to wriggle out of the wires and bring his hands in front of him his hand is only bleeding a little bit.

Quotes:
Brett: Follow the blood!

Disturbingly brilliant

Rating: 8/10

This film could easily have just been some chavs bullying people, but it is much more then that. I have watched many horror/thriller films and they have rarely effected me the way this film did. From the beginning the mood is set of this extremely happy couple living in their bliss and as most of you will know before watching this the film is not about their happy relationship. The first thirty minutes of the film are more easy going then the rest, but still captivating. As the film continues it shocks you beyond belief, I expected gore but I didn't expect how the tone of the film would make me feel.

If you have an uneasy stomach or sometimes get emotional, prepare yourself for this film. It is gruesome but some scenes are a little too realistic which is what makes the film different. A lot of horror films similar to this lack realism so the audience cannot connect with the protagonist as easily, but Eden Lake has been made with a great deal of empathy for the couple and hate for the young kids. Seeing as there is a strong connection between audience and the characters there is a great deal of emotion involved which is unexpected, but this shows that the film has been made very well and that the actors do their job perfectly.

The young actors who play the chavs are fantastic, and i'm not going to say fantastic 'for their age' because they are truly talented actors regardless of age. Jack O'Connell plays the ring leader of the group Brett, and he really shines. Playing a merciless hateful character is not the easiest thing to do, but if you didn't know better you would think that is how he is in real life because he is just that good. I have been a big fan of Thomas Turgoose since he was in This is England because he is also a very talented and realistic actor and he doesn't disappoint in this film either, but he isn't in it as much as I would like. The other actors in the group are equally as talented. As for the couple they were perfectly cast and they have great chemistry, I have been a fan of Michael Fassbender (who plays boyfriend Steve) for a while but I had never really noticed Kelly Reilly before (who plays girlfriend Jenny) but she plays the character very well and hits the right emotions at the perfect time.

All in all the film draws you in, keeps you captivated, shocks you with the gore and blows you away with emotion. The best thing about it and what makes the movie special and better then most other similar films is just how real it is. You almost feel like this is happening to you, and their reactions are also real human reactions too. The film is truly great and one of the best of its genre, very impressive all around.

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