[HorrorScience] Lake Mungo (2008)

When I am asked to recommend a horror movie in general, without taking into account the various subgenres, Lake Mungo It is one of the ones that comes to mind among the top positions.

Why has a film of this style, which has a basic premise and seemingly slow development, gotten stuck in my mind as irrevocably as this one has? Perhaps it is because its development is not as slow as it was intended, or that the basics of its initial premise of "missing girl who later returns as a ghost" turns out to be somewhat complicated until the credits themselves.

The truth is that the reason does not matter, This is one of those few movies that left me with a strange feeling when I finished watching it.. A feeling of uncertainty when looking towards some dark corner of my house, with the fear that my mind will play tricks on me and make me see something there that does not exist. And just because it doesn't exist doesn't mean it's not there. Even worse would be if that were to move, and that it was not something that was a product of my suggestion.

Lake Mungo It is a tape in format mockumentary or mockumentary, which has been seen so much for years in the genre, especially after the now famous Blair Witch Project. The story is built based on the stories of different people in the style of an interview for a TV program, together with films made with video cameras or mobile phones belonging to different characters.

This film begins by telling us about Alice Palmer, a 16-year-old teenager who in 2005 drowns while swimming with his family in a dam in the town of Ararat, Australia. Shortly after, strange things begin to happen in the Palmer house, who also later discover that Alice, or someone who appears to be her, appears in some tapes and family photos taken after her death, always half hidden in the background, in the darkness, or as a blur that blends into the vegetation, out of focus.

Telling more about the plot would ruin the experience of whoever decides to watch this feature film after having read this, since It is Alice's story and the course of events that take place that is the main attraction of this effective film., which demonstrates how a mockumentary of horror, with a very high level of realism and giving us moments of tension in dribs and drabs but at a constant pace, keeping us interested in knowing what happened until the last second.

And few followers of the genre, and even lovers of suspense, can resist what Lake Mungo offers us: a mystery, which is resolved only to leave us with more questions, which are answered and create new questions for us, which then seem to obtain a conclusion that ends up not being one and leaving us thinking and connecting the dots about what we saw, what we heard, and what we intuited.

This film achieves an atmosphere dense and credible, thanks to the excellent performances of each and every one of the protagonists, who know how to make us believe their characters at all times, especially Rosie Traynor playing June Palmer, Alice's mother. When June tells us some of the events that happened, it is as if someone familiar was telling them to you. As if what happened was something very close to you.

The music accompanies the entire film with instrumental melodies almost entirely, although in a film of these characteristics nothing more is expected, since the music remains on the same plane as the sounds in general, having presence exclusively to highlight the quiet moments, suspense or the climax of a terrifying scene.

Joel Anderson has done a great job writing this story and directing it, and has managed to create a film that makes you feel the same as you felt as a child if you heard a scary story at night.

It is very difficult to carry out an analysis of this Australian production trying not to reveal anything important about the plot and at the same time interest the reader enough to watch it, but it is better not to say more and reserve the suspense for those who dare to see it and take the time to do so. I just have to say that you will find several plot twists, which enrich the story with sub-plots and make you more and more interested in knowing what exactly happened and why.

For my part, it remains one of the ghost films that I recommend the most, if not the most, and an opportunity to break away from the commercial and generic horror films that are generally produced in regular batches in the USA. Here you will not see an unstoppable killer, nor a monster or an alien. Here you will see the story of an ordinary family facing something unknown, gradually discovering the secret life of their daughter, her fears and the steps that led her to her destiny and beyond.

Three fun facts about Lake Mungo:

• The producers of The Ring They bought the rights in 2010 to make an American remake of this film, which would be released in 2011. The project was paused and nothing has been heard from since.
• It was one of the films selected for the AfterDark Horrorfest 4 of 2010, a cycle also known as 8 Films to Die For, in which the American production company AfterDark together with LionsGate bought the distribution rights to foreign films and/or independent filmmakers every year and released them in theaters, in addition to presenting them in a festival dedicated to the series and marketing them on DVD. This fourth edition of the cycle was the last, and in 2011 it was replaced by AfterDark Originals.
• The story begins in December 2005, and we are informed in an interview that the autopsy was performed on Monday the 27th and the body was released on Tuesday the 28th. December 27, 2005 was a Tuesday and the 28th was a Wednesday.