Official synopsis
A couple’s romantic vacation at a secluded estate is upended when they are forced to share the mansion with a mysterious and attractive couple. In this darkly hilarious and seductive horror story, a dream getaway spirals into a nightmarish maze of sex, lies, and manipulation, bringing terrifying secrets to light and triggering a bloody battle for survival.
Review
Horror films set in Air Bnb-style rentals are practically their own subgenre at this point, and the same could be said about ones involving double bookings, too. Director Mercedes Bryce Morgan’s Bone Lake is the latest entry in both those categories, and it is a doozy.
After a cold open that sees a couple running naked through the woods as they try to evade a killer with a bow and arrow, we meet long-time couple Diego (Marco Pigossi) and Sage (Maddie Hasson), who are headed for what Diego hopes will be a clothes-free vacation next to the titular lake, where he plans to propose marriage. We sense quite early on that Sage might not be on the same page.
Soon after the couple checks in, another couple — Will (Alex Roe) and Cin (Andra Nechita) — arrive, seemingly having also booked the same property through a different website. Whereas Diego and Sage are on the reserved side regarding personalities, Will and Cin are outgoing and adventurous to the point of sending up yellow flags that will soon turn blood red.
Bone Lake is rich with shocks and surprises, not to mention plenty of pitch black humor, and when not dealing in gruesome violence as in its cold open, heaps on the uncomfortability, mystery, and tension factors. It’s the kind of film that viewers should go into as cold as possible to experience maximum jaw dropping and hand wringing.
The ensemble cast members all give superb turns, and they have plenty to work with thanks to Joshua Friedlander’s wickedly delightful screenplay. Morgan does wonderful work at the helm, ratcheting up the suspense and unease expertly.
Bone Lake is the type of horror film that you can’t help but finding fun, despite all of the unease it throws at viewers. If you are considering it for a date night horror movie, hopefully you are in a strong relationship.
Bone Lake, from Bleecker Street and LD Entertainment, opens in theaters on Friday, October 3, 2025.
Photo credit: Maddie Hasson and Marco Pigossi in BONE LAKE, courtesy of Bleecker Street and LD Entertainment.
