Writers: François Choquet and Charlotte Le Bon from the graphic novel by Bastien Vives
Director: Charlotte Le Bon
The setting for Falcon Lake – teenagers in an isolated cabin on the edge of a lake which has reputation for being haunted – evokes memories of horror/slasher movies from the past. Director Charlotte Le Bon (who co-adapted the script with François Choquet from Bastien Vives’s graphic novel) exploits the expectations of viewers by teasingly including several horror-movie moments. 16-year-old Chloé (Sara Montpetit) has a morbid infatuation with death and enjoys posing like a corpse or dressing as a ghost. The movie opens with her floating corpse-like in the lake setting the mood for a film in which little can be taken for granted.
For children and teenagers a few years in age can make a massive difference. Bastien (Joseph Engel) strives for credibility by reminding people although 13 he is almost 14 and exploits the naivety of his younger brother to send him on pointless errands when he wants to be left alone. He has, however, never encountered anyone like Chloé who seems to typify not only a more adult view of the world but a feminine perspective.
Bastien and his French family are spending the summer holidays in the Canadian countryside at a cabin owned by the mother’s friend and her daughter Chloé. The parents barely feature in the film and, in a demonstration of their indifference, allow the adolescents to share a bedroom. Surprisingly, Chloé takes an interest in Bastien including him in activities with older teens she has befriended. Gradually she moves from encouraging Bastien in the usual acts of rebellion – drinking alcohol- and becomes like an older sister steering him towards maturity. But if Bastien has the usual teenage fears – a horror of being caught masturbating by his parents- Chloe is more complex. Her brash outward confidence and confrontational relationship with her mother conceals a need to fit in which may lead to her succumbing to peer pressure and have a dark outcome.
Charlotte Le Bon playfully maintains the possibility Falcon Lake might turn into a conventional horror movie. When Bastien first glimpses Chloé she is perched in darkness on the end of his bed in the manner of a long-haired female ghoul from an Asian horror film. The movie is full of unsettling shots of deserted highways and bridges enhanced by Shida Shahabi’s ethereal score. Kristof Brandl’s cinematography creates a threatening sullen mood as if the weather is always on the point of a storm.
Teenagers in movies are usually the basis for ribald humour or used as cannon fodder for supernatural killers. Falcon Lake on the other hand deals with the anxieties of Bastien and Chloé in a sensitive manner and the disconcerting atmosphere provides a background for their growing concerns.
There is the sense of the characters being out of their emotional depth and their actions, or failure to act, being determined by their young age or lack of experience. Bastien’s responses despite his efforts remain immature even innocent. Although he is concerned about Chloé’s behaviour in the company of her contemporaries, he is unable to offer the support she needs. Rather than a bodyguard he is limited to the role of observer. His actions remain those of a child, offering ice cream as comfort when Chloé is upset by her boyfriend.
There is no sense of Chloé being a sexual predator, initially she does not regard Bastien as a sexual being – hosing him down in the shower after he is sick as if he is a pet or a young child and unaware she is causing him to become aroused. It is an excellent performance from Joseph Engel wordlessly conveying Bastien’s confusion and unstated desires. Although Chloé is sensitive enough to guide Bastien towards sexual maturity in a delicate manner she remains blind to the way her own insecurities leave her vulnerable to exploitation by others. In another stand-out performance Sara Montpetit shows how Chloé’s desperate need to be one of the crowd pushes her towards self-destructive actions.
Treating seriously the concerns of the characters rather than simply exploiting their youth ensures Falcon Lake is genuinely haunting.
Signature Entertainment presents Falcon Lake on Digital Platforms 15th May.
