Running Time: 86 minutes
Release Date: Sept 4, 2014 (Mexico)
Review by: Stacey
Another blind Netflix pick, Neverlake sounds like your typical supernatural thriller set in some beautiful foreign landscape. As you can tell by the cover art, it doesn't exactly draw you in (I have no idea why anyone would compare this movie to The Human Centipede) but it's my duty here at To Avoid Fainting... to watch the movies that most would typically pass over and let you know if it's watchable or not. Which leads me to tell you that this movie was not as bad as some crappy poster would lead you to believe.
After her mother falls ill and being sent to live with her grandmother, Jenny (Daisy Keeping) travels to the Tuscan countryside to visit her father (David Brandon). A former surgeon, her dad apparently now collects artifacts from the Lake of Idols (which is actually a real place). It's an archeological dream spot that is believed to once hold mythical healing properties. Along the way, Jenny meets a group of orphans who basically show her what's really up with the lake...and her dad.
This movie actually had a really cool and original story. In a community like the horror one, the last few years have seen their fair share of rehashed and overused plots, but Neverlake made the bold move to create a film that hadn't been done before. The location lent itself to the overall tone of the film, it was beautiful but also mysterious and at times, ominous. The cast was exceptionally good and the score really helped hold down that spooky ghost vibe. Director Ricardo Paoletti and writers Manuela Cacciamani/Carlo Longo got that much right at least.
Where Neverlake failed to shine was in the horribly boring pace of the film. The genuinely suspenseful parts seemed to be peppered in to a story that mostly dragged- at least until the final act, which was really good but couldn't save the rest of the film. Clocking in at 86 min., Neverlake feels like it could have made for a really great short film or had some scenes cut from it that didn't do much to help the story (and there were quite a few of those).
If you're bored and perusing Netflix, Neverlake isn't a terrible film to land on, but I'm not promising that it'll cure your incessant yawning.
This movie actually had a really cool and original story. In a community like the horror one, the last few years have seen their fair share of rehashed and overused plots, but Neverlake made the bold move to create a film that hadn't been done before. The location lent itself to the overall tone of the film, it was beautiful but also mysterious and at times, ominous. The cast was exceptionally good and the score really helped hold down that spooky ghost vibe. Director Ricardo Paoletti and writers Manuela Cacciamani/Carlo Longo got that much right at least.
Where Neverlake failed to shine was in the horribly boring pace of the film. The genuinely suspenseful parts seemed to be peppered in to a story that mostly dragged- at least until the final act, which was really good but couldn't save the rest of the film. Clocking in at 86 min., Neverlake feels like it could have made for a really great short film or had some scenes cut from it that didn't do much to help the story (and there were quite a few of those).
If you're bored and perusing Netflix, Neverlake isn't a terrible film to land on, but I'm not promising that it'll cure your incessant yawning.
2/5 ghost-filled lakes
Check out the trailer here!
Sounds like The Black Waters of Echo's Pond. A good idea dragged down by other factors (in that case it was a great twist-ended dragged down by horrible acting).
ReplyDeleteYeah, it's such a bummer when a movie with a great plot is ruined by stuff that could've really been avoided. Thanks for reading :)
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