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Stranger by the Lake

Country: France, Language: French, 97 mins

Original Title

L'inconnu du lac
  • Director: Alain Guiraudie
  • Writer: Alain Guiraudie
  • Producer: Sylvie Pialat; Benoit Quainon

CGiii Comment

Okay...this might sound prudish...but, what's the point with the porn?!?

It's about cruising in the bushes beside a lake with a plethora of penises...and, endless, tedious shots of a carpark.

The film centres around Franck; a dim, pathetic, needy man who seems to be in all the wrong places at the wrong time. He is blind-sighted by a murderous throwback to the 70s...because, it seems, he is (1) desperately lonely, (2) has a penchant for moustaches and (3) any murderer will do.

The story is quite ridiculous....gaping holes and fatal flaws. The hype surrounding this film is down to the (brief and sparse) explicit sex scenes...contrary to what others have said: they are gratuitous and without them, this film would/should have disappeared into the ever-increasing junk heap of other failed LGBT films.

There is no character development, the constant repetition wears thin (very quickly) and the conclusion is an underlit car crash.

More pace, less porn, and...that moustache, shave it off!


Trailer...

L'INCONNU DU LAC / STRANGER BY THE LAKE (Trailer ST EN) from Les Films Du Losange on Vimeo.

The(ir) Blurb...

Summertime. A cruising spot for men, tucked away on the shores of a lake. Franck falls in love with Michel. An attractive, potent and lethally dangerous man. Franck knows this, but wants to live out his passion anyway.

Cast & Characters

Pierre de Ladonchamps as Franck;
Christophe Paou as Michel;
Patrick d'Assumcao as Henri;
Jerome Chappatte as Inspecteur Damroder;
Mathieu Vervisch as Eric;
Gilbert Traina as L'homme du mardi soir;
Emmanuel Daumas as Philippe;
Sebastien Badachaoui as Le mari d'Eric;
Gilles Guerin as L'homme a femmes;
Francois Labarthe as Pascal Ramiere