Caddo Lake
By Sioph W. Leal
Caddo Lake centres around multiple disappearances and the connections that forms between the most recent of an 8-year-old Anna (Caroline Falk) and other mysteries of the lake. Paris (Dylan O’Brien) is a young man who was involved in a car accident that took the life of his mother next to Caddo Lake. Ellie (Eliza Scanlen) is a troubled young girl who wants to learn more about her past. Though they aren’t connected at first, Paris and Ellie’s lives do become intertwined as the lake’s mystery is explored.
Based on the lake of the same name, one of the things that makes the real lake so special is the size of it. Depending on rainfall, the lake can span around 26,000 acres with the bayou’s shallow, slow-moving current that adds to the eerie sights. Writers Celine Held and Logan George clearly capitalised on this and with the help of producer M. Night Shyamalan, Caddo Lake becomes its own character. The cinematography perfectly builds the mysterious atmosphere of the movie while showcasing the lake’s natural beauty. The vast, bleak landscape of Caddo Lake really helps to showcase and elevate the despair that Paris and Anna feel as the movie progresses.
Fans of Dylan O’Brien are no stranger to his stellar acting and his performance in Caddo Lake is exceptional. Compared to Ellie, Paris is a lot more reserved, choosing to isolate himself from those he cares about but O’Brien’s performances add to the entire story. Ellie is the more complex out of the two, showcasing the complicated family dynamic between Ellie, her mother Celeste (Lauren Ambrose) and stepfather Daniel (Eric Lange). Ellie’s storyline is the more interesting out of the two, mostly because it explores the intricacies of a family in turmoil.
With strong performances from O’Brien and Scanlen, it’s a shame that Paris wasn’t as integral to the plot as he could have been. Paris’s involvement in the main plot of Caddo Lake doesn’t seem as important as Ellie’s until the final part, and while O’Brien does enough to hold the viewer's attention, the writing lets him down. Given that it was Ellie’s sister who disappeared, her storyline feels a bit too convoluted. Perhaps this is due to the fact that while Caddo Lake is a mystery, having too many plots like portals that allow characters to walk through time feels unnecessary.
Caddo Lake could have been a strong mysterious movie, but without a clear narrative, it can leave a lot to be desired. While Caddo Lake does take some narrative risks that doesn’t quite pay off, the performances by O’Brien and Scanlen save the production. Without O’Brien or Scanlen, Caddo Lake would have been hard to get through. While some plots can be overly confusing, Caddo Lake is very atmospheric, and a great watch for the spooky season!