Eden Lake [Blu-ray] [2008] [US Import]

'Eden Lake' is about a young couple who decide to escape London for the weekend and have a romantic weekend at a remote lake. What they weren't expected was to be terrorised by a gang of young thugs which starts with a disagreement about how loud the music is and leads to much, much worse.

I love a good British horror but I was expecting nothing like this - 'Eden Lake' is very close to real life and is actually really terrifying to watch as it made me think that this could happen to absolutely anyone at anytime, anywhere. Yeah, it does go a little over the top near the middle of the film but is still stays very close to some of the problems that Britain has been dealing with in recent years such as knife crime, happy slapping (filming attacks on camera phones), parents not taking any responsibility for their children's actions and "hoodies" terrorising innocent people.

If you like horror films I definitely recommend watching this but don't expect a very pleasant viewing as for the most part this film is very disturbing.

A nice, decent couple go away for the weekend in what they expect to be a quiet secluded part of the woods beside a lake and end up aggravated, hounded and tortured by a group of Asbochav kids.

I read several of the reviews here before watching this which collectively kind of hyped it up such that I was expecting something rather special. It's pretty good, yes, but I didn't find it quite as disturbing or as shocking as others have done. Where it stands out, I feel, is in its sense of reality - for the most part all the characters and their actions, together with the script, were convincing and authentic. That's an unusual compliment to pay what is ostensibly a horror film, but I guess some effort was made to incorporate some of the social issues that blight our nation these days and as a result it rarely felt over-the-top or gratuitous. It was a little bit disturbing, I admit, because it leaves you with the sense that it could actually happen, and the acting was spot-on given the various scenarios.

One or two of the incidents that took place during the most violent stages had me flinching, curling my toes or releasing an expletive despite watching it alone. Yet I would suggest once again that not many of the gruesome parts were there purely for shock value, which made it all the more watchable and worthy of being taken seriously. There were no comic-horror moments at any time, nothing to make you chuckle. I thought Kelly Reilly in the leading role was excellent from start to finish, displaying great versatility between schoolteacher, lover and finally a woman hell-bent on furious retribution. Overall the kudos go to the director James Watkins who also wrote the screenplay. It's a well put together short story with a sinister undertone, that being the thought that most of what happens in the film isn't too far from reality.

I watched this in full 1080p Blu-Ray but as is often the case, I forgot about that within a minute or two. I haven't seen the SD version but the high-def option didn't blow me away with its wondrous picture quality, it just seemed like a normal DVD.

Extras include interviews with the director and the producer, both lead actors and Thomas Turgoose (who plays the thug Cooper), a 'behind the scenes' feature, a Q&A session with the director, TV spots and trailers. As far as I know there were no foreign language options of any kind, just the facility to have subtitles in English.

In summary: a scary and occasionally disturbing film that is probably a cut above the majority within its genre. Worth seeing.

I don't think that this film is at all short of reviews, but I would like to add my comments, being an avid horror fan.
I wouldn't exactly say that this is a horror film, more of a thriller with some gore (depending on your mind set of course!).
To most people this film would in fact appear disturbing, compared to your average Saturday night thriller, or most other things shown on TV. To an avid horror fan looking for something a bit different I would say it's worth a watch, but don't be expecting to add it to your DVD collection afterwards, it's not all that great.

The bad guys in this film are a bunch of kids heading for ASBO's (although their parents are also portrayed this way), but the actors who play the kids are actually really good, (one of them previously starred in This Is England). Unfortunately the adult couple, those that are being hunted, the ones you're actually supposed to care about.. are awful! They portray a very prim & proper, naive couple who you're just willing to see bumped off all the way through the very slow start to this film.

I found myself wanting to shout at the woman in particular for being so stupid, standing by & watching whilst her boyfriend was being tortured, rather than going off to get help or intervene in any way. Judging by a lot of reviews for this film it is the sort to get under your skin & leave you feeling creeped out, & for some, thinking it could be real. For others, myself included, it is just watched for what it is..a film, and quite badly acted & far fetched at that. Fans of horror will not be bothered by it, but to every one else..enjoy!