[Wicked Lake]
Plot:Is the sordid supernatural tale of a group of four co-ed girls who look forward to a relaxing weekend getaway. Unbeknownst to them, two clans of deranged male misfits follow them to their secluded, picturesque lakeside cabin in the mountains. The girls appear to be easy prey for the predatory perverts until the fateful stroke of midnight when all hell, literally, breaks loose!

Cast:Marc Senter, Robin Sydney, Will Keenan, Tim Thomerson, Michael Esparza, Angela Bettis.

My Thoughts:Not so wicked.

Review:Zach Passero's "Wicked Lake" follows a group of four girls, who on the surface seem to be lesbians. One of them is walked home by the neighborhood nerd, before they all take off for a cabin retreat. Soon after arriving at the cabin, the nerd along with some crazy rednecks in his family show up, and the rednecks decide to do what hillbillies do best, rape and murder the girls. At first, it all seems too easy...and the girls seem too deep in trouble, and the film seems like it's beginning to spiral down that "Texas Chainsaw Masscare" hill, and I seem to be getting a migraine.

But...suddenly, one of the girls utters to one of the guys, "wait till midnight" a she's taking liberties with her. And then it hits me, midnight is usually the witching hour in most myths and legends, so perhaps this film isn't gonna be so bad after all. "Wicked Lake" follows the train of thought that less is more. It gives us very little background on anything. The nerd, his screwed up hick relatives, and of course the four women who at midnight become...something. Something that we're never told about, but we just have to assume that whatever they become...it's dangerous.

And it's certainly dangerous for their attackers. Of course their attackers are such sick pervs that as they finally get their come uppance, the viewer feels no pity for them at all. Which is something this movie actually did wrong. Usually in a film where a group of people are bringing their own fates upon themselves...there's a person or two in that group of want no part of the violent or cruel act, and end up being the hero's or heroines at the end. This film doesn't have that, and that really made if feel kind of lopsided. Despite the enjoyable moments where the hungry women seek their vengeance on their backwoods predators.

The movie sort of breaks down into a weird, plotless mess in act two. The girls kill cannibal style, but there's no why, how, or when revealed. Why are the girls immune to bullets? Why are they eating people? How did they get this way? And when did they gain these abilities? There is a scene early in the film where perhaps, an explanation lies as to how the girls have managed to tap into a supernatural pipeline of immortality, but I highly doubt ''that's" the way to gain supernatural abilities from the powers below. But then again what do I know, I'm no expert. The film does have a nice throwback vibe to it though, with the overall look and tone of the film.

As well as the setting, and the cheesy plot which seems like something that might've emerged from the 80's era. Blood and gore hounds will love this film as well for it's non-shy attitude towards the red stuff. It flies, and it flies hard and fast...especially during the films final act. Which is where a genre veteran makes an appearance as a police officer, who doesn't exactly wind up being much help when the shit continues to hit the fan. The films ending is decent enough, but it still feels choppy in some ways due to how things play out in the finale, and the ending resembling the ending of another indie horror film called "Satanic". "Wicked Lake" was an interesting, weird, 80's throwback ride...but overall, while it does alot of schlock things right, it gets many vital components wrong as well.

Positives:Good amounts of blood and gore, hot girls, great twist with the girls turning out to be not exactly human.

Negatives:Not enough info flow on the girls abilities, and no real protagonist to the hot antagonists.

Overall:Two out of four stars.





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