Set in a cruising spot for gay men by a lake in France, Frank falls for the attractive but dangerous Michel, while befriends the lonely and sympathetic Henri. If you are fond of richly photographed lakes, you will find something in Alain Guiraudie's otherwise flat thriller, but then I'd rather recommend the works of James Benning. Though his entertaining talent and understanding of the Chabrolian aspect of fatal attraction are evident at times, his characters are rather one-sided, or even unnecessary. Facing depression apparently, the most interesting of them was Henri for me, but sadly enough Guiraudie's camera never stays with him too long. Despite all this, I was somewhat impressed with the ambitions of the ending.

While the content might be off-putting to some, STRANGER BY THE LAKE is a somewhat effective thriller that toys with its audience by taking things slow. However, in my opinion, things were a little TOO slow at times. The main drive to the plot doesn't really happen until about halfway through and the narrative doesn't move forward any until about two-thirds of the way in. Up until that point, it's mostly just a lot of dialogue-driven character development.. There was also no score, which I thought might have helped. Still, I enjoyed the naturalistic photography. Overall, I found it slightly boring until the plot really kicked in, but the film is not without its merits. Recommended for non-prudes who enjoy French cinema. I don't really see this film having that wide of an audience, though.

The lake in the title is a place where men go to skinny dip or wander off into the woods to have gay sex. Cute young Franck meets tall hunky Michel there and falls for him. Then he sees Michel drown another man. He wants to tell the police but he's in love with Michel and starts having sex with him. Can he ever turn Michel in? This got a lot of controversy when it was released in the US. It has quite a bit of full frontal (and back)male nudity, hardcore gay sex and a lengthy simulated sex scene between the two leads. It was never rated (it would have gotten an NC-17 easily) but no one under 17 was admitted to the cinema. It got raves over here and did fairly good in the art house circuit. It also won Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival. I can't see why. It IS well-directed but Best Director??? Hardly. The film has plenty of male nudity (there's no females in the film at all) and sex but it also moves at a snails pace. I dozed off twice! Even worse the film has no ending. If just sort of stops with no resolution to the conflict. I'm giving if 5 stars for the beautiful cinematography and the two main leads. They're handsome, can act and have great bodies. Also some of the nudity and sex was hot. Still I was more bored than anything else.

At one point, after two men have had sex, they shake hands, as in, nice meeting you. If you're gay, like me, the absurdity of the situation may be familiar. This story of lust and death portrays gay men cruising and having sex with a clinical detachment that doesn't flinch. Clearly, many straight people will be appalled. But if you're gay, that probably won't bother you, but you will be appalled by the irresponsibility of the main character, Franck. He puts himself at risk every time he has condom-less sex. When he pursues and has sex with a man he has seen kill someone, it's no longer mere irresponsibility. That you're not sure what Franck's motives are keeps you from dismissing him outright as a Grade A idiot, but that remains a possibility up to the bitter end.I understand why this is seen by many as a metaphor for human alienation in general. From a gay perspective, however, it's not a metaphor, it's a slice of life. So I'm not sure if us gay folk have been used or been celebrated here. Made fun of or commiserated with. Maybe a little of each. The fact that it's not obvious is probably what tilts this film in the direction of Art.Granted, this movie didn't just hold my interest, it was gripping. However, as much as I admired the storytelling technique, it was tempered by a suspicion that the auteur's seemingly detached depiction of a part of our lives was in fact a moral judgment.