Review: The Land of Blue Lakes

Text © Richard Gary / Indie Horror Films, 2021
Images from the Internet

The Land of Blue Lakes (aka Земля Голубых Озер)
Directed by Arturs Latkovskis
[Self-produced]
72 minutes, 2021
www.facebook.com/landofbluelakes
https://vimeo.com/ondemand/357056

Though I tend to find most found footage flicks to be tiresome at best, right from The Blair Witch Project (1999), there have been some exceptions, such as M.O.M. (Mothers of Monsters) (2020) and Grave Encounters (2011). And, that being said, seeing one from the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic definitely piqued my interest.

So, yes, the film is in Russian with very easy-to-read subtitles (white letters in black boxes), so let’s be mature and get over that right now, ‘kay? With a miniscule budget of under USD$1,200, which basically would cover the food, gas/transportation, and perhaps kayak rentals, I wonder if Latvia has a film tax credit, or a Film Board with subsidies, as does Canada. I know, however, that this film was completely self-funded by the director (I asked).

As with Blair Witch, all five of the central characters are named after themselves, including the director/writer, who plays a version of himself. These five go into the wilderness of Latgale, to kayak along some beautiful waterways. If you look at a map of Latvia, you can see that there is a lot of natural areas. This makes me want to see it in person, even if that never happens. Of course, I’ll pass on the spooky stuff.

I don’t believe I’m giving anything away as this starts with title cards saying that all the participants were never seen again, and the footage was found on “the dark Web” (it’s always the dark Web, ain’t it?). While this intrigues the viewer (i.e., me), at the same time it also projects that the odds are there may be no “final girl” – or guy – and no good will come from the adventure. Of course, that is generally the direction found footage goes anyway, and this is quite the common opening trope. No negative feelings here, it is time to soldier on.

At the opening, we are introduced to the cast as they gather to head off into the wilds. It feels very natural, and I am assuming that most of the dialogue (if not the direction of the conversation) is ad-libbed on the spot. Arturs is also the main cameraperson, trading off on occasions with the others, especially his girlfriend Veronika Rumjanceva, which makes it easier without a crew needed to tag along. I am assuming that all of the five are friends of the director in the non-cinematic world as well, as this is their only IMDB credit for all of them. This means they know each other well enough to riff off the others’ personality, which is a good thing.

From this point, it almost feels like watching someone’s travel video, but I have to say, for some reason, I found the kayaking scenes through tall reeds visually stunning and interesting, more than even the somewhat mundane casual conversations as our three guys and two gals (others are Alina Sedova, Vladislavs Filipovs, and Edgars “Zuz” Jurgelans) float, eat and drink, going further into the lake district (while we don’t see other visitors at this point, there are roads/bridges and what looks like train tracks which they paddle under (more about this later). It feels both isolated and civilized at the same time, but they go further into remote areas.

Latgale is in the far eastern end of Latvia. The country is mostly Lutheran, but Latgale is historically more Roman Catholic and “Old Believers” Russian Orthodox (thank you Wikipedia). This Other view by the mainstream religion plays a part in the story, as our intrepid kayakers meet up with some “pagans” (I am assuming a distortion of non-Lutherans, as religious folk of any stripe are wont to be). They may not be interpreted as ferocious as, say, the Wrong Turn franchise, but these are more mystical and mysterious, showing up at unexpected moments.

Ever so slowly, we are introduced to the pagans, through runes and painted symbols, a dolls nailed to tree, and their own Point-of-View filming of the sleeping kayakers. The tension starts to build, but there is more boating yet to be done.

Another aspect I find interesting, as with, say, United States National Parks, there is an odd mix of wilderness and civilization, such as an unmanned weir and those road bridges that look forlorn. In the story, Latkovskis is a student of the Pagan religions of the region, so along the way, in bits and pieces, we get some nice exposition, such as about the angry Thunder Sky god, Pērkons, setting up for an enjoyable visit to an island with an ancient stone for sacrificing (surrounded by modern garbage from previous visitors) and rotted, abandoned boats that I would have loved to have photographed, as well (taking pictures of decay is one of my hobbies).

So, is it a supernatural thing that is haunting them, as in Blair Witch, or is it a more human element? Of course, I will not say, but the ending did come as a bit of a surprise, I am happy to report.

I am not sure why I found this so interesting, perhaps because I enjoy travelogues and seeing the cast’s real reactions to physical obstacles on their journey (e.g., fallen trees blocking their waterway). It is definitely a slow burn film, much in the way of Blair Witch or the Paranormal Activities franchise, and if you are a fan of those types, this might be right up your lake.