Featured Audience Ratings

• Tsubaki S

  
  A mockumentary with actual brains and with a story not build around the gimmick of the "shaky realistic camera" or whatever you want to call it. There are some flaws, the story lacks more juice and it wanders a bit too much on several places. It's a drama with a… More
  A mockumentary with actual brains and with a story not build around the gimmick of the "shaky realistic camera" or whatever you want to call it. There are some flaws, the story lacks more juice and it wanders a bit too much on several places. It's a drama with a supernatural background, it bothers to have more compelling characters than just walking cliches. Not a classic but certainly worth a check.

• Lewis C

  
  Lake Mungo is an excellent documentary-style ghost story from Australia. It was quite different from what I expected. This isn't Paranormal Activity, despite the vaguely similar premise. It's primarily about the story of a family who has lost a loved one and can't let… More
  Lake Mungo is an excellent documentary-style ghost story from Australia. It was quite different from what I expected. This isn't Paranormal Activity, despite the vaguely similar premise. It's primarily about the story of a family who has lost a loved one and can't let her go. This is much closer to a paranormal triller/supernatural drama than a horror movie. Recalled mainly through interviews, camera, and cell phone footage, Lake Mungo is about an Australian family named the Palmer's. Teenage daughter Alice is lost in a drowning accident while on a family outing in 2005. After her death, they still sense her presence in their home, and shadowy images of her begin to show up in photos. Revealing any more of the story than that would be a disservice. Kudos to the absolutely excellent acting from the relatively (at least, for this American) unknown cast. This is one of the more "real" feeling fiction documentaries that I've ever seen. This a lot of the reason Lake Mungo was so immersive to me. All the characters seemed like completely genuine people. This almost could have been a documentary that I stumbled upon while flipping through the channels. This is probably one of the creepiest movies I've seen since The Others. Very unsettling. Not a lot of big chills and shocks, but it slowly builds an unsettling sense of atmosphere and dread of the unnatural and unknown, along with an unexpected but welcome mystery element. The plot goes a lot of places that might not be expected. At it's heart, Lake Mungo is also a quite sad movie. It was easy for me to believe that these people had lost a beloved daughter, sister, and friend, long before her time. If you're looking for a pure, jump out of your seat popcorn horror flick, this isn't it. I happen to think it's something more interesting than that, though. A movie that sets out to do something different, and does it very well. I loved it. I haven't been this pleasantly surprised by a movie since Triangle.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Cast: Talia Zucker, Rosie Traynor, David Pledger, Martin Sharpe, Steve Jodrell, Tamara Donnellan, Scott Terrill Director: Joel Anderson Summary: When a series of inexplicable supernatural events strikes their home, Russell (David Pledger) and June (Rosie Traynor) Palmer try to… More
  Cast: Talia Zucker, Rosie Traynor, David Pledger, Martin Sharpe, Steve Jodrell, Tamara Donnellan, Scott Terrill Director: Joel Anderson Summary: When a series of inexplicable supernatural events strikes their home, Russell (David Pledger) and June (Rosie Traynor) Palmer try to figure out exactly what is behind the tragic drowning death of Alice (Talia Zucker), their 16-year-old daughter. A psychic (Steve Jodrell) might be able to help them. My Thoughts: "I really liked that the film was shot in documentary form. Just them telling the story is what made it more interesting, and believable for me. The acting was great, and the film was well made. I found myself being drawn into believing the story was true. The film is not scary. There's nothing jumping out yelling BOO! But the film is haunting, chilling, and also terrifying in a way. The footage on the daughters cell phone is creepy, and psychologically disturbing. A great ghost story."

• Summer W

  
  Despite it's unusual faux documentary format and a pretty slow pace, I ended up getting sucked in to Lake Mungo.

• Drew S

  
  I read about this not knowing it was part of the After Dark Horrorfest, the output of which has been...uh...dubious. I haven't seen many of the festival's movies, but then from what I've heard, I haven't had a reason to. My tentative disappointment upon seeing that… More
  I read about this not knowing it was part of the After Dark Horrorfest, the output of which has been...uh...dubious. I haven't seen many of the festival's movies, but then from what I've heard, I haven't had a reason to. My tentative disappointment upon seeing that shitty After Dark trailer was short-lived. Lake Mungo, a roaring standout in the rarely notable field of Australian horror, is a mysterious Lynchian delight. I'd hesitate to call it scary, but the film is filled with a pervasive sense of dread and sadness, and there are numerous chilling reveals that form knots in your stomach. A documentary-style exploration of a couple dealing with the inexplicable drowning of their daughter Alice, exceptional performances and editorial framing maximize the impact of this slightly familiar tale. Perhaps my one disappointment comes from a mid-movie plot revelation. It's clever, and deftly resculpts many of the events that come before it, but it leaves you wondering how the movie's going to top it...which it never really does. In terms of direct occurrences in the story line, things are revealed to be a little simpler than we are initially led to believe. There's nothing wrong with this approach - in fact, it contributes to the movie's winning simplicity - but Lake Mungo left me wanting more, which I say in the most positive way. I wouldn't come here looking for jump scares or a sensational story, but if you're looking for a quiet, nightmarish little yarn that waxes and wanes supernatural, you should absolutely give this a shot. It'll stick with you.

• jd c

  
  Creepy and chilling stuff! Very scary movie.

• Joey S

  
  A creepy slow-burner of an Australian horror movie, Lake Mungo gradually unravels its mysteries with small eerie discoveries up until the terrifying climax. The movie has an impressive sense of unity, especially considering that the ending closes up all loose ends brought up from the… More
  A creepy slow-burner of an Australian horror movie, Lake Mungo gradually unravels its mysteries with small eerie discoveries up until the terrifying climax. The movie has an impressive sense of unity, especially considering that the ending closes up all loose ends brought up from the beginning of the movie, and all of the movie's events are shown to be closely connected to each other. The movie is formatted as a documentary of one family's search for answers in the mysterious death of their sixteen year old daughter. The movie is completely fictitious, but you wouldn't know it from watching it, as the actors are completely naturalistic and believable. There is nothing that indicates that they are acting, they just seem like normal people thrust into an extraordinary situation. Most of the movie's scares come from photos and found footage, which is a gimmick that doesn't always work in movies. However, in Lake Mungo the found footage gimmick is used to great effect, and this movie is ten times scarier than its weaker American counterpart, Paranormal Activity, which was released around the same time as this movie and got much more attention. I'm not one to scare easily from horror movies, but in all honesty the climax of this movie terrified me enough to make me loudly utter "OH MY GOD" at the TV. If you're looking for an intelligently creepy psychological horror movie, Lake Mungo delivers on nearly every front, and the horrifying climax will likely burn itself into your mind for a good while.

• Ryan M

  
  6.1/10 "Lake Mungo" is an ambitious film, and I wouldn't for a second tell anybody to steer clear of seeing it, but I feel as if its reach exceeds its grasp, perhaps only mildly. While this might be assuring to some; it will have the exact opposite effect on… More
  6.1/10 "Lake Mungo" is an ambitious film, and I wouldn't for a second tell anybody to steer clear of seeing it, but I feel as if its reach exceeds its grasp, perhaps only mildly. While this might be assuring to some; it will have the exact opposite effect on others. You might enjoy "Lake Mungo", and I won't deny that for the most part, I myself did. However, the film promises to deliver something new when it comes to the hand-held sub-genre of the horror film, and it just doesn't. I've seen too much of this before. But that doesn't mean that "Lake Mungo" is a wasted experience. It has some scares, some spine-tingling moments, and even some thrills. But it has a story to tell as well; and it is one that didn't affect me as I wanted it to. The appeal of horror movies shot with not-too-pricy digital camcorders comes from the realism-feel. And "Lake Mungo" certainly delivers when it comes to that aspect, but my biggest issue with the film is that...well, that's all it does; and nothing genuinely "unique" beyond that. A young lady goes missing while swimming at the local dam. She has drowned by the time her parents seek her out. She is buried; her family grieves in different ways. One form of grieving is dreaming frightening and fascinating encounters with their now-dead-family-member. Another form of such emotional release is setting up video cameras all 'round the house because the family members each feel that their daughter may still be amongst them. The family consults a psychic named Ray. He's a kind man; although he may have some secrets that he's keeping from the family; just like the dead daughter. But you don't need to see the movie to know that there's a "big reveal" near the end. In fact, just look on the back of the DVD and the IMDB synopsis and you'll find such info. So I'm not spoiling too much for you. The video footage that is recorded from the cameras overnight it sometimes eerie and creepy, and at other times, just-plain-silly. I like to experience new scares; and playing ominous and creepy music whilst closing in on a "hidden image" of a presumably dead person is nothing near a "new scare". The film often repeats its scares. But I still feel that most people will get what they want out of the experience when they watch it. When it comes to found-footage films, claiming to be "true stories", this one isn't great or even particularly good, but I admire its ability to have the same appeal as all the other films of its type. It was made with craft and skill; with a story that I can neither criticize nor praise. And as for being a true story or not, let's just assume that it's all fake; because it most likely is. If my dead daughter was visiting me in the night, within the images from my digital-cameras, I wouldn't want to edit it and put it out in theaters; eventually submitting it to After Dark Horrorfest 4. But what found-footage; hand-held horror movie isn't fake? "Lake Mungo" is not a film at fault for its obscurity when it comes to the truth; this is merely how these movies are. And they can't really be made otherwise. "Paranormal Activity" and "REC" are better examples of their sub-genre because they are truly scary films. Doors close and demons roar in "Paranormal Activity", while zombies linger, not too far from the heroes, in "REC". "Lake Mungo" is perhaps flawed because it lacks the feeling of truly being there; at the scene of such horror. The story is told in memory of the events, instead of just down-right exploiting them in the very moment. This is one thing I kind of liked and kind of hated. But in the end, I can't say there's much I do hate about "Lake Mungo", other than the fact that it's nothing more than competent, well-made entertainment, and that I'll soon easily forget it. But at least the ghosts in this film, unlike many of the ghosts of Hollywood horror movies, don't get in your face and yell "BOO"! Instead, they just stand there and quietly say it; like gentlemen.

• Robert F

  
  Very spooky. I don't recommend watching it alone at night, as I did.

• Christopher B

  
  Along with being a chilling horror film (shot in mockumentary style) this is a heartbreaking look at death and grief. There's one scene in particular that's as scary as the reveal in Woman in Black and should stick around in the back of your mind for years, but the real… More
  Along with being a chilling horror film (shot in mockumentary style) this is a heartbreaking look at death and grief. There's one scene in particular that's as scary as the reveal in Woman in Black and should stick around in the back of your mind for years, but the real reason to watch is it's intelligence and thoughtfulness when showing a family's incomprehensible loss. The ending is fantastic, though many waiting for a horrific payoff may leave disappointed.

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