In Theaters and Digital/On Demand on June 21st, 2024
An American woman living in the UK in a mansion finds herself doubting her sanity after another woman is murdered on the road to her mansion.
Written by Elizabeth Fowler and B.A. Paris and directed by Jeff Celentano, Blackwater Lane is the definition of bland, even with some (predictable) twists, giving the strict minimum in terms of entertainment. The cast is usually good or at least serviceable usually, but here the characters as all “as expected” and so is the story, it’s surprises, and how things end. If one pays just a little attention to films of this type as well as this film in particular, they will see just about everything coming. And that is the main issue here, the story is bland, but it’s also predictable. It’s film in exactly the way one would expect, the direction making just a notch above not worth bothering.
The cast, as mentioned, is ok. They do their job, they give expected performances, some of them coming off a bit odd. The cast can only do so much with the material provided, but they all seem to give it their best shot. Minka Kelly plays the lead and she either is doing “lost lady, potentially mentally impaired” really well or she actually has no clue what is going on. Dermot Mulroney is doing basically what he’s been doing for a while now, giving an ok performance and cashing a check, this is a performance of his that lets down his old school fans. Maggie Grace rounds out the main cast and she’s ok? Maybe? It’s one of those performances that isn’t bad, but isn’t great, it’s a performance that makes you wish she could really let loose and go extra, but the part doesn’t call for it. She’s usually entertaining, here she seems to not want to be there in some of the scenes, something is off. The rest of the cast is ok, not great, not bad, just there.
In terms of the technical side of things, everything looks fine. It’s all good, but nothing really inspiring in one way or another. The cinematography by Felix Cramer has a few good moments, but for the majority of the film, it adds to the generic feel of the film. The editing by Douglas Crise works, but it has just nothing special about it. Same with the wardrobe, the music, etc. The set decor is where the film somewhat shines, it makes decent use of the mansion and the construction inside of it.
Blackwater Lane is best described as bland. It’s not exactly bad, it’s not exactly good, it’s just there. There are twists and turns, but anyone who has seen similar films will see these coming from a mile and those who pay attention to the story properly will too. It’s one of those movies that makes you wish it was better. There is talent here, but most of it is underused or not used at all. There is something here, but the film seems to aim to make the least of its potential and becomes a frustrating watch.