Stranger by the Lake
2013 · Movie · NR · 100 min · ★ 6.3 · 88% critics
During a summer at a secluded lakeside cruising spot, a man searching for connection becomes consumed by an intense attraction to a charismatic stranger. As unease and suspicion ripple through the tight-knit routine of the beach and nearby woods, desire begins to clash with caution and conscience.
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Streaming on MUBI, BFI Player Classics and Strand Releasing.
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Details
- Original title
- L'Inconnu du lac
- Years
- 2013
- Release date
- 2013-06-12
- Language
- French
- Rated
- NR
- Runtime
- 100 min
- Critic score
- 88/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.3/10 (468 votes)
About
You may like this if you want an erotic, unsettling thriller about desire and risk in a single-location setting, with an ambiguous edge like Caché; Not for you if explicit sex or slow-burn pacing frustrates you.
Pros: tense, eerie atmosphere; bold, explicit intimacy; intriguing moral conflict | Cons: slow, repetitive pacing; thin characterization; ending feels unresolved
Themes
- lake
- drowning
- detective
- cruising
- investigation
- love
- murder
- loneliness
- male homosexuality
- skinny dipping
- summer
- swimming
- +9 more
Awards & recognition
- Queer Palm · 2013
Cast & crew
Pierre Deladonchamps
as Franck
Christophe Paou
as Michel
Patrick d'Assumçao
as Henri
- JC
Jérôme Chappatte
as Inspector Damroder
Mathieu Vervisch
as Éric
Gilbert Traïna
as Tuesday Night Man
Emmanuel Daumas
as Philippe
Sébastien Badachaoui
as Eric's Boyfriend
- GG
Gilles Guérin
as Ladies' Man
François-Renaud Labarthe
as Pascal Ramière
Directed by Alain Guiraudie