Svartsjön

''Black Lake'' is a Nordic series (Danish, Swedish and Norwegian co-production) that attempts to mingle a classic mystery whodunit plot with supernatural horror elements and, in my opinion, the result was rather poor especially in the second season. The story involves the visit to an abandoned ski resort by a group of young Danish and Swedish people, in order to repair and reopen it. But the place has its own secrets and soon sinister phenomena begin to affect the visitors who will have to unearth the secrets of the past in order to stay alive and get out of there in one piece. The first season casts some really talented Scandinavian actors with Sarah-Sofie Boussnina's exquisite beauty shining in the 8 episodes of the first cycle. In the second season the actors involved are Filip Berg, who is the connecting link between the two seasons as he is the only actor selected to perform the role of the spoiled rich kid Johan, André Eriksen and Hedda Stiernstedt who delivers a great performance as the sensitive and goodhearted Minnie. I think that the first season was better in terms of both plotting and characterization while the second had a rather weak story with uneven pacing and lack of climax in the ending. The supernatural element, which had a major significance in season 1, has no clear function in the story and it could be even totally omitted by the production with no consequences as far as the plot is concerned. I have to say that my rating (3/5 stars) concerns the first season while if I had to rate the second one it would be closer to 2/5 stars. Overall, ''Black Lake'' is certainly not the hottest Nordic Noir television production, nevertheless it offers some thrilling and chilling moments, especially in the first season. Both seasons are consisted of 8 episodes of 45 minutes each, so it makes for a rather quick watch. It is recommended for the fans of the genre but I would be hesitant to suggest it to a wider audience.

When a group of good looking 20 something Swedes head off for a skiing holiday to a remote ski lodge, it turns out that more than Skiing, Schnapps and Sex are on the agenda. Unknown to them twenty years previously a family staying at the lodge had been brutally murdered. This of course means strange things start to happen. Lights flicker on and off books fly off shelves and one by one the group start acting strangely. All this and throw in a creepy caretaker and a cellar that no one will dare enter, and you have an above average thriller set in the stunning Swedish mountains. 7/10

In short - it's really good. The Swedish horror takes a great deal of unoriginal and common themes, but manages to connect them in such a way, that it's hard to stop watching. The movies strengths, are most definitely:

• Aesthetics: (from the intro, to the scenery to the actors themselves, the movie is beautiful and it's cold atmosphere works well with the plot).
• Properly done shots: I personally dislike many of "spoiling" horror shots or predictable scenes. 'Black Lake' does have a couple of those, but not enough to spoil the fun.
• Music - not intrusive but atmospheric (and fitting well the movie's aesthetics)
• Ending - while there is one detail which annoyed me in the ending, what I like is that here it doesn't come in a 'one big bang' but unfolds through at least 2 episodes and reveals more than one secret.

The weaknesses:

• Uneven perfomance - varying not as much between characters, as between the same characters in different episodes. Sometimes it's really good, however at some scenes you get the impression the protagonists are dull inside. Perhaps it's intended though
• Characters doing stupid things - okay, so this one is extremely common in horrors and 'Black Lake' is not the worst one... but neither clean of this sin. A person who - by themselves even though they can call their boyfriend/girlfriend or simply friends, decided to visit a creepy cellar alone? Stupid. And what's worse is that this behaviour repeats to the very end (even when the character's are perfectly aware of the dangers).

If there's ever season 2 I will certainly watch it

Had the makings of a thriller but poor writing let it down. None of the characters had any redeeming characteristics and behaved irrationally throughout. This sort of film will work as a supernatural thriller, or as one that appears to be, but turns out to have rational explanations; but if you try to have both, as this film did, it doesn't work. Poor example of what Scandie drama can be.

Right from the start season 1 was very mysterious and scary. Not always logical, but very exciting nevertheless. I loved the enchanting winter scenery. Season 1 gets a rate from me of 8.

Season 2 was very boring. Also the sect / commune was very annoying. After 3 episodes it still did not capture our attention, so we skipped the rest. Season 2 gets a rate from me of 2.