Eden Lake

 It’s a sign of the times when the modern horror film hits so close to home. Watch the news anywhere in the world and stories of youth gone wrong are widespread. In these times of growing economic division, it’s no surprise that the disillusioned teens are fighting back. In the UK, in particular, there has been a huge rise in juvenile knife attacks and it’s in this society that director James Watkins has set his debut feature, the hoodie-horror, Eden Lake.

Michael Fassbinder and Kelly Reilly are excellent as the couple who bore the brunt of vicious pre-pubescent violence. Fassbinder is fast becoming the man of the moment after his stellar turn in Steve McQueen’s Hunger and his role as a gun-toting film critic in Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds and he is brilliant here as the full gravity of the situation becomes apparent. His reluctance to act until too late recalls Dustin Hoffman’s ineffectual teacher in Sam Peckinpah’s British excursion in Straw Dogs; a theme also explored in both versions of Michael Haneke’s Funny Games. Reilly from The Spanish Apartment also gives an amazing performance, especially considering what her character is put through at the hands of the teenage delinquents. The gang themselves are uniformly well played. Many will recognise Thomas Turgoose from This Is England and he once again shows himself as a young actor to be watched.

One of the fascinating aspects of Eden Lake is not necessarily the class divide but the way that the children’s families rally round to protect their flock, even though they know exactly what their offspring are capable of. There is no denying that Eden Lake is hard to watch. Whilst not wallowing in blood and gore lWatkin’s film does have a vicious streak and contains a few scenes that will certainly distress some viewers. It seems after years in the wilderness the British horror film is back on bloody track.

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