Film Review – Bone Lake (2025)

      Bone Lake, 2025

      Directed by Mercedes Bryce Morgan.

      Starring Maddie Hasson, Alex Roe, Marco Pigossi, Andra Nechita, Eliane Reis, and Clayton Spencer.

      SYNOPSIS:

      A couple's getaway at a remote estate is disrupted when they must share the mansion with a mysterious pair. What begins as an idyllic vacation devolves into a harrowing ordeal filled with deceit, manipulation, and a struggle for survival.

      In Mercedes Bryce Morgan's Bone Lake, community college instructor Diego (Marco Pigossi) expresses his concern about becoming a cliché as he aspires to write about relatable personal experiences. His girlfriend, Sage (Maddie Hasson), who has taken on most of the financial burdens and is about to start a job in publication editing, encourages him to follow whatever brings him satisfaction.

      It's unclear if Diego's worry about clichés was an intentional statement by screenwriter Joshua Friedlander, as he soon finds himself caught in a different sort of cliché when their seemingly happy relationship is tested by the malicious couple Will (Alex Roe) and Andra Nechita’s Cin (spelled with a C because, apparently, an S would be too straightforward for a film lacking subtlety), who are also staying at the double-booked Airbnb.

      The film offers some superficial intrigue in that it’s not strictly a story about infidelity, but rather the drama that arises from distrust and the unsettling need for answers to questions that might be better left unasked, even if it threatens to dismantle the relationship. The tension builds as it becomes clear that the entire narrative is a test of Sage and Diego’s love, which is plagued by insecurity and vulnerability from Diego. There is a twisted pleasure in witnessing grotesque violence and determining whether the couple can resist the blatant manipulation.

      The issue with Bone Lake is that it lacks the mystery it believes it possesses regarding its narrative direction. It is also nowhere near as sleazy as it attempts to be, mainly saving that for an outlandish twist that feels either unnecessary or presents odd contrasts between the couples. The prologue hints at a much grittier and unsettling film before it settles into an overt psychological torment that becomes more tedious than engaging until the climax erupts in sex and violence (both literal and musical).

      This film makes a flippant comment about a character hoping not to become a cliché, yet it ultimately succumbs to tired tropes. The mind games played by Will and Cin, alongside the display of male fragility (notably, Will's fear that Cin might be unfaithful, mimicking Diego's treatment of Sage and other planned gestures), feel stale, with the outcome clearly indicated. Additionally, if this is intended as a comedy of errors and social niceties, it lacks humor as well.

      Bone Lake yearns for the unsettling tone found in Speak No Evil (the original, not the forgettable Hollywood remake), but fails to hit the mark, lacking the necessary nastiness, dark humor, sleaze, or shock value. That might have been forgivable had it possessed more depth, realistic characters, and psychological tension; instead, it offers some gleefully gory chaos and a couple of truly memorable kills (in both the beginning and the end). By that point, though, viewers may already be ready to exit, particularly considering the absurd twist.

      Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★

      Robert Kojder