Good concept, poorly executed.

Absolutely the worst movie.

Absolutely Fantastic

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

This movie is very well made. Atmosphere, nuances, elements; all carefully considered to create realism and still have a psychological horror/thriller twist. I believe the closure the family gets at the end is from finding all possible evidence and none of it leading to them getting rid of their daughter/sister. It should be unsettling to the family that she was being warned by paranormal means and was taken away that way. They don't believe, then they believe because of the son playing tricks, then don't believe again, then at the end believe but it's OK (it was scary when they thought they were being haunted but not when it's haunting your family member to death). The mothers reaction to seeing her daughter in the room during the last psychic session and the daughters reaction to that is also revealing of some dark secret between them. The psychic notices this but is bound by not being able to prove his findings that the family is guilty; that's why that scene turns cold fast. When the family has exaggerated responses to people not telling them certain things or showing them; especially that those things didn't really help with the case says a lot. I can spend much time typing why I see that her family are the killers but re-watch it with that in mind. You'll see what I mean.

What I like about this movie is the unsettling atmosphere, the subtlety of the included paranormal activity and the turn it takes. It often feels so real. It never gets hectic or sensational. I love that. What I also feel however is that despite the subtlety, it seems a bit too contained.The story itself is mostly sad: a grieving family are unexpectedly drawn into a paranormal experience shortly after their daughter dies. Every family member deals with this in a different way. The vibe of the found footage/ documentary style makes all the difference. I suspect subtlety is key for the effectiveness; by staying away from bombastic episodes, everything you get is mysterious. The found footage is vague, creepy and 'real'. Also the timing and rhythm in the entire film add to the experience. You crave more but you get only as much/little as the Palmer's did.Lake Mungo leaves room for imagination. Although my first thoughts about what was actually going on (don't worry no spoilers) proved to be right, there were still unexpected revelations: one is clever because it happens at the right time. Another revelation seems to be completely random; there is a particular story line that could have been left out. Brings me to the one flaw of this movie; the film is quite slow already and could have done without that part slowing it down even more.All together Lake Mungo has the ability to keep your attention while exploring interesting ideas about ghosts, loss, life and death.

Jam-packed with one twist after another and never letting its viewers figure out just where exactly its plot is headed, Lake Mungo is one of the most underrated works of mockumentary horror that's cleverly crafted, ingeniously executed and takes a turn on every available opportunity to sustain a sense of uneasiness throughout its runtime.Lake Mungo centres around the Palmer family that is mourning the accidental death of their young daughter after she drowns while swimming at a dam. As the Palmers attempt to move on from the unexpected tragedy that befell them, they experience a set of inexplicable events in their house & eventually unearth a dark secret about their deceased girl.Written & directed by Joel Anderson, Lake Mungo is staged like a documentary, filled with archival footages, family photographs & personal interviews but an aura of mystery surrounding the death & an unsettling vibe in the aftermath sequences is consistently felt throughout its runtime. It is an expertly constructed picture that's palpably tense & soaked in suspense.Anderson's direction is top-notch and the way he manages to keep the viewers invested & unsure of what lies ahead is worthy of praise. The grainy & low-quality of the recorded footage or photos further compels the viewers to observe each frame more closely, and although its documentary style is borrowed, the film tick marks all the elements that make them gripping in the first place.What definitely works in its favour is that it manages to keep the interest alive from start to finish and rarely follows a predictable route, for whenever the audience tries to connect the dots, a new twist surfaces & steers them in a different direction. Editing is brilliantly carried out and the pacing is methodical. Camera is sort of fixated on time-lapse photography while the cast provides added authenticity with their sincere inputs.On an overall scale, Lake Mungo is a highly riveting psychological horror, deeply embedded with supernatural elements, and offers an interesting take on grief plus how people deal with it. Keeping its viewers on the edge of their seats throughout its runtime and managing to be bone-chilling on a few occasions, this Australian chiller is one of the most undervalued gems of its genre, is worthy of your time & money, and requires a much broader attention.

This movie is the most boring one, I've seen for a while.I had to watch it in three parts, spread over 3 days. Couldn't keep my eyes opened while watching this boredom. But due to some praise in the other reviews, I tried to watch it till the end, as apparently there will be a big pay off. Except there wasn't.This mockumentary basically shows a bunch of people which get interviewed, and then other people get interviewed, then the next scene is the same people getting interviewed again. There is no real plot and the so called twists, aren't twists.It's not scary at all, despite some people praising this film for being genuinely scary, it is absolutely not. You get to see some very blurry pictures with a ghost on it, that's it, that's the whole approach of this movie to scare you.If you still believe the other good reviews, like I did, I've got a tip for you. If you watched 20 minutes of the movie, and judge this is too boring, than turn it off. It won't get better, that will be all you get. There will be no payoff.But I must say, I can imagine that a 8 year old might be a little scared of this, so if you want to familiarise your little kids with the "horror" genre, this might be a good fit.