Body of Water (2011) User Reviews

Lack of understanding of spiritual things

[Indep-Thinker · 4/10 · 20 November 2022]

Pros: great attention grabber and charming protagonist

Cons: A poorly developed idea, if there was one at all.

Lack of understanding of spiritual things and the concept of sacrifice in particular.

Two ideas for upgrade options: 1. Positive protagonist: with respect for nature as a living being. In this case, the spirit of the lake helps her save her drowning son.

Or A negative protagonist obsessed with materialistic things and consumerist attitude towards nature.

In this case, the spirit of the lake gives her a lesson by taking away her beloved son in order to awaken human feelings in her and give her a chance to improve.

Mystery tale

[tux-12 · 7/10 · 13 February 2012]

Julia is a young lawyer who has been in conflict with her father for a long time. Her mother seems a bit insane, and Julia thinks that he is partially responsible for this. She has also split with the father of her son and tries to escape all these concerns by working hard. On a new case, she is brought back to the house near the lake where she was raised to help a group of environmentalists to protect its natural beauty against the industrial project of a power company. But by doing so she has to fight the greed of the locals, and their trust in an evil spirit that is believed to be attached to the lake.

So this is a story full of mystery and fairy tales, very atmospheric, dark, and pretty much centered on the person of Julia, extremely well played by Krista Kosonen, that brings us to a surprising end. Overall, an interesting Finnish film.

Psychological drama disguised as a classic ghost story

[sorendanni · 7/10 · 22 December 2021]

Syvälle salattu aka Body of Water is an interesting Finnish film. After the mysterious intro about an old legend, the story could also have been the start of an ecological thriller: a young lawyer travels with her son to her native village. She is there for a lawsuit against the electricity company that wants to build a dam. That dam will ensure that the nameless lake of the village will disappear.

The film allows the viewer to see through the eyes of the lawyer. She is the unbeliever who is confronted with an ancient curse, an evil spirit called a water nymph. She discovers that her son is in danger, from the evil spirit, but also from the villagers who allegedly sacrificed children.

Only after a pretty tense climax do you as the audience discover that everything was in the lawyer's head. That she actually has an unresolved childhood trauma, where her brother drowned in the lake. It's beautifully presented, but it poses a problem.

It is all a bit fast for a psychological drama, there is little room for depth. There are few if any hints, no lead-up, no aha moments afterwards. And as a horror fan, you are just disappointed and unsatisfied. As if you suddenly awaken from a dream.

The film scores for quality both in cinemagraphy and in acting. It is authentic Finnish, so as a foreigner I would check out Syvälle salattu for that reason alone. But the script is too weak to call this a classic.

''This could have been so much more...'' is the feeling the closing credits leave behind. Therefore a well-considered 7/10.