Stranger by the Lake

Alain Guiraudie has always filmed gays, but not necessarily those on the covers of gay magazines. He has made them the heroes of bizarre and utopian films. L'Inconnu du lac (Stranger by the Lake) is his purest film. His most Bressonian. Firstly, because it shows bodies passing from hand to hand, like the stolen wallets in Pickpocket. And also because he uses still shots (of stopped cars, of unchanging locations) to create a reality on the edge of fantasy. The most beautiful character in the film remains the witness on the sidelines: Henri isn’t very handsome. Not very gay, either. If he spends his holidays in this cruising spot, looking out over the lake, it's because he’s as lonely as hell. Perhaps this is Franck’s inverted double, the one he will later become. The film ends in darkness, at night. In drama. But a few hours later, the cars will be back. The lake will shine in the sun. And other naked bodies will be waiting... An implacable ritual. Motionless time. (Pierre Murat; Télérama)