The stranger at the lake
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | The stranger at the lake |
| Original title | L'inconnu du lac |
| Country of production | France |
| original language | French |
| Publishing year | 2013 |
| length | 100 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 16 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Alain Guiraudie |
| script | Alain Guiraudie |
| production | Sylvie Pialat |
| camera | Claire Mathon |
| cut | Jean-Christophe Hym |
| occupation | |
| |
The Stranger at the Lake is a French erotic thriller directed by Alain Guiraudie from 2013 .
action
Franck is a young gay man who often spends the summer by a lake, where he finds new lovers while cruising . This year he is at the lake for the first time. He gets to know Henri, who is always sitting to the side and has no interest in cruising. Both become friends and often sit together, talking or in silence. Henri is a forest worker and is on vacation. Having just broken up with his girlfriend, he hopes to find casual company on the beach. Franck wants to reorient himself professionally over the summer, but is also on the beach to find sex partners. He is particularly interested in Michel, a man who has only been coming to the beach regularly for a month. Michel seems interested in him but is in a relationship with the jealous Pascal who even interrupts their conversations.
One evening, after spending time with a stranger, Franck stays longer in the wooded area not far from the lake. From there he watches Michel and Pascal who have gone swimming. They both dive into each other until the game becomes serious. Michel drowns Pascal, then swims calmly ashore, takes his things and leaves. The next day, the dead man's car is still in the parking lot and his belongings are still on the beach. The beach visitors don't care. Michel, in turn, now begins to flirt with Franck, who puts aside his concerns. They become a couple, kiss and sleep together in the woods the next day. Although Franck invites him over, Michel refuses, since he has his own life.
One day the parking lot by the lake is empty. Only Henri is there and reports to Franck that a male corpse was found in the lake that morning. Although he fears that the men will now stay away from the beach, the situation normalized the next day. Michel is also back on the beach and continues his relationship with Franck. What is new, however, is Inspector Damroder, who asks visitors to the beach about the evening of the crime. Franck claims to have spent the evening with a man he does not know and to have seen nothing. As a result, he asks Michel subtly about his relationship with Pascal - Michel says that he doesn't miss him. Henri, in turn, warns Franck about Michel, who seems strange to him, so Michel was jealous of him because Franck and Henri are talking to each other. Franck confronts Michel about his jealousy and Michel finally leaves. In the evening, Franck lets another person orally satisfy him. Inspector Damroder is waiting for him at the car. He suspects that Franck knows more than he says, and orders him to go to the police station for the next day. When the inspector is gone, Michel suddenly stands in front of Franck. They both hug. The next day, Franck was swimming when Henri went to see Michel. He makes it clear to him that he knows that he drowned Pascal. The Commissioner will soon have evidence of this. Shortly afterwards, Franck sees Michel slice Henri’s throat with a knife. He tries to save the seriously injured Henri, but he dies after admitting that he had no will. When Michel returns to the scene of the crime, Franck flees from him. Shortly afterwards he sees Michel stab Inspector Damroder as well. He hides from Michel who is looking for him. Only when it is dark does Franck venture out of his hiding place. He begins to call out for Michel softly and then louder.
production
The Stranger at the Lake takes place on ten consecutive days, with the murder happening at the end of the second day. The film contains numerous erotic scenes, especially between the characters Franck and Michel, who play large parts of the film completely naked. However, sexually explicit recordings were doubled. The film works completely without music and was shot purely as an outdoor shoot in natural light in one location. The location was the Lac de Sainte-Croix not far from the Verdon Gorge . The costumes were created by Roy Genty and François-Renaud Labarthe , the production design is by Roy Genty, François-Renaud Labarthe and Laurent Lunetta . Director Alain Guiraudie, who also wrote the script, took on a small role in the film as a friend of Philippe.
The Stranger by the Lake premiered on May 17, 2013 at the Cannes International Film Festival as part of the Un Certain Regard series. It was released in French cinemas on June 12, 2013 and was also shown in German cinemas on September 19, 2013. The film was released on DVD in November 2013.
criticism
The Standard called Der Fremde am See “one of the most remarkable films of the year” and ARTE found that Guiraudie “has not only presented a new, but also his best film and […] with its (radiantly classical) staging and theme amazing maturity [proves] ”. The film service wrote that the film "shows the sexual behavior of men [...] in a pornographically clear manner", but "without exhibiting it". The crime plot "undermines and transcends" the carefree existence of the men on the beach.
The French magazine Les Cahiers du cinéma voted The Stranger by the Lake as the best film of 2013 (before Spring Breakers and blue is a warm color ).
Awards
The Stranger at the Lake won the Queer Palm and the Un Certain Regard directing award in Cannes in 2013 . He also ran in the competition for the Un Certain Regard film award . Also in 2013 the film was nominated for a Louis Delluc Award for Best Picture.
In 2014, Pierre Deladonchamps was nominated for a Prix Lumières for Best Young Actor. In 2014, the film won a César in the category of Best Young Actor (Pierre Deladonchamps) and was nominated for seven other awards: in the categories of Best Film , Best Director (Alain Guiraudie), Best Supporting Actor (Patrick d'Assumçao), Best Original Screenplay ( Alain Guiraudie), Best Cinematography (Claire Mathon), Best Sound (Philippe Grivel, Nathalie Vidal) and Best Editing (Jean-Christophe Hym).
Web links
- Stranger by the Lake in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The stranger at the lake in the German dubbing index
Individual evidence
- ↑ Release certificate for Der Fremde am See . Voluntary self-regulation of the film industry , August 2013 (PDF; test number: 140 187 K).
- ↑ Sex, Death, and Geometry: A Conversation Between Alain Guiraudie and João Pedro Rodrigues on L'inconnu du lac . cinema-scope.com, accessed February 2, 2014.
- ^ A b c Frank Arnold: "I didn't just want to provoke with sex". Interview . derstandard.at, November 1, 2013.
- ↑ a b Cannes 2013 Day 3: “L'Inconnu du lac” by Alain Guiraudie (Official Competition - Un Certain Regard) ( Memento of the original from February 19, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked . Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . arte.tv, May 17, 2013.
- ↑ Jacques Mandelbaum: Alain Guiraudie: “La libération sexual a produit plus d'aliénation qu'on ne le pense” . lemonde.fr, June 11, 2013.
- ↑ The stranger at the lake. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ↑ "L'inconnu du lac", meilleur film de 2013 selon Les Cahiers du cinéma ( Memento of the original from February 19, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . lci.tf1.fr, November 28, 2013.
