Courtesy of Bleecker Avenue/LD Leisure
It’s clear the characters in Mercedes Bryce Morgan’s “Bone Lake” by no means noticed “The Rental” or “Barbarian,” as a result of rule quantity one in all Airbnb horror is straightforward: by no means share the area with strangers. Fortunate for us, ignoring that rule units the stage for some basic cat-and-mouse pressure, the place awkward encounters, simmering lust, and fragile relationships collide in a thriller as chilly as it’s gleefully earnest. Like a trashy actuality TV binge with an erotic edge, “Bone Lake” takes its title actually, carving out a horny, suspenseful dissection of belief, temptation, and betrayal.
The bloody outcomes may catch you off guard, however the journey there may be much less surprising than you’d hope, even when the strain is palpable. At its middle is Diego (Marco Pigossi) and Sage (Maddie Hasson), a mean couple making an attempt to inject life into their stale routine with a weekend getaway at a distant mansion on Bone Lake. He’s hoping to reignite each his writing profession and his relationship by dabbling in erotica fiction, whereas she’s quietly wrestling with their intimacy rift.
Their plans unravel virtually instantly when one other impossibly engaging couple, Will (Alex Roe) and Cin (Andrea Nechita), arrive claiming to have booked the identical home. As an alternative of doing the logical factor and resolving the mix-up, the 4 determine to cohabitate for the weekend. Nothing dangerous has ever come from that selection, proper?
From there, “Bone Lake” morphs right into a sequence of assessments, video games, and provocations designed to probe the {couples}’ supposed devotion. Cin flirts with Diego beneath flimsy pretenses, typically scantily clad, whereas Will makes more and more aggressive strikes on Sage. The duo’s ulterior motives are apparent however intriguing, and the setup recollects the erotic thrillers of yesteryear like “Deadly Attraction” and “Primary Intuition,” with faint echoes of final 12 months’s “It’s What Inside.”
“Bone Lake” succeeds at its major aim: preserving viewers hooked. Morgan leans into the uneasiness of the situation with moody lighting, voyeuristic hidden-camera photographs, and a dedicated forged that sells the implausibility with straight-faced conviction. The movie’s campy vitality works in its favor, even when a late, overblown monologue meant to elucidate all the things feels hilariously pointless.
Foolish, seductive, and tense sufficient to maintain its acquainted premise, “Bone Lake” proves the 2025 horror streak is alive and effectively. It doesn’t reinvent the style, but it surely makes essentially the most of its setup with a mixture of intercourse, suspense, and trendy mischief.
BONE LAKE opens in theaters Friday, October fifth