The Upcoming
  • Cinema & Tv
    • Movie reviews
    • Show reviews
    • Interviews
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Cannes
      • Sundance London
      • Venice
      • London
  • Music
    • Live music
    • Album reviews
    • Interviews
  • Food & Drinks
    • News & Features
    • Restaurant & bar reviews
    • Interviews & Recipes
  • Theatre
    • Fringe
    • Vault Festival
    • Interviews
  • Art
  • Travel & Lifestyle
  • Interviews
  • Fashion & Beauty
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
  • Join the team
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Competitions
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

Culture Cinema & Tv Movie reviews

Falcon Lake

Falcon Lake | Movie review
5th May 2023
Andrew Murray
Avatar
Andrew Murray
5 May 2023

Movie and show review

Andrew Murray

Falcon Lake

★★★★★

Release date

10th May 2023

Charlotte Le Bon creates a unique and enthralling coming-of-age love story in her feature debut Falcon Lake as the “almost 14-year-old Bastien (Joseph Engel) becomes enamoured with the slightly older Chloé (Sarah Montpetit) while vacationing with his family at a picturesque lakeside cabin. At 16, Chloé initially dismisses Bastien as immature. However, as the pair begin to spend more time with each other, a sexual tension begins to emerge – something that is made increasingly difficult to ignore, thanks to the closeness of their living arrangements. What makes Falcon Lake stand out in a genre that’s becoming oversaturated, though, is the playful way in which the filmmaker weaves elements of a chilling ghost story into the script.

The remote cabin-in-the-woods setting of this film would feel at home in likes of Evil Dead, Friday the 13th, Knock at the Cabin, or any other similar horror outing. Adding to the spooky atmosphere is Chloé’s story that the lake is haunted by the ghost of a child who drowned there. There are no dead children jumping out of the lake as in the finale of Friday the 13th, but Le Bon nevertheless understands the connotations of the setting and embraces them with a mischievous spirit that lightly toys with genre tropes. From the lights not working when the family arrives at the cabin to the teenagers dressing up as the lake’s ghost, there’s a charming gothic sense of humour running parallel to the blossoming romance. 

As well as giving the feature a striking sense of presence, the horror elements are likewise cleverly deployed into the thematic bones of the script. While the older teenagers and adults are quick to dismiss the ghost story as make-believe, the youngsters hold onto the possibility that the tale could be true. One of the older teens even chastises Chloé for being so childish to make something like that up – but that’s because she, like Bastien, is still a child. 

Whereas many coming-of-age films explore someone moving onto a new chapter of their life, Falcon Lake examines that limbo between childhood and adulthood to haunting effect. It’s only in the final act that the supernatural elements come to fruition; and even here Le Bon transforms them into something that’s equal parts bittersweet and tender.

In short, Falcon Lake is a coming-of-age story that’s unlike anything that’s been done before.

★★★★★

Andrew Murray

Falcon Lake is released digitally on demand on 10th May 2023.

Watch the trailer for Falcon Lake here:

Related ItemsBastien VivesCharlotte Le BonfilmFrançois ChoquetJoseph EngelMonia ChokrimoviereviewSara Montpetityoung adult

More in Movie reviews

Eileen

★★★★★
Selina Sondermann
Read More

Girl

★★★★★
Umar Ali
Read More

Maestro

★★★★★
Filippo L'Astorina, the Editor
Read More

The Eternal Daughter

★★★★★
Selina Sondermann
Read More

Ronnie O’Sullivan: The Edge of Everything

★★★★★
Umar Ali
Read More

Rustin

★★★★★
Matthew McMillan
Read More

Napoleon

★★★★★
Musanna Ahmed
Read More

Is There Anybody Out There?

★★★★★
Matthew McMillan
Read More

Driving Madeleine

★★★★★
Andrew Murray
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Movie and show review

Andrew Murray

Falcon Lake

★★★★★

Release date

10th May 2023

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • The top 12 books to read this winter
    Fashion & Lifestyle
  • Cian Ducrot at Hammersmith Apollo
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Wishmas
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Impressionists on Paper: Degas to Toulouse-Lautrec at the Royal Academy of Arts
    ★★★★★
    Art
  • Eileen
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going to Happen at Bush Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Girl
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • The top 12 books to read this winter
    Fashion & Lifestyle
  • A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going to Happen at Bush Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Girl
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Impressionists on Paper: Degas to Toulouse-Lautrec at the Royal Academy of Arts
    ★★★★★
    Art
  • Cian Ducrot at Hammersmith Apollo
    ★★★★★
    Live music
The Upcoming
  • Contact us
  • Join the team
  • Subscribe to the mailing list
  • Support us
  • Writing for The Upcoming

Copyright © 2011-2023 FL Media