Synopsis
At a cruising spot near a lake, Franck falls in love with Michael, a handsome and lethally dangerous man. Even though Franck is aware of this, he chooses to follow his passion.
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Cast
- Pierre DeladonchampsFranck
- Christophe PaouMichel
- Patrick d'AssumçaoHenri
- Jérôme ChappatteInspector Damroder
- Mathieu VervischÉric
- Gilbert TraïnaTuesday Night Man
- Emmanuel DaumasPhilippe
- Sébastien BadachaouiEric's Boyfriend
- Gilles GuérinLadies' Man
- François-Renaud LabarthePascal Ramière
Recommendations
- 100
Slant Magazine
Alain Guiraudie's film portrays cruising as a danger-seeking and astoundingly repetitive affair, intimately linked to death itself. - 100
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Spare, steely, sexually explicit in a way that transcends mere provocation, Stranger by the Lake is vital cinema. - 100
Village Voice
Stranger abounds with precision and detail, evinced not just in the spectacular visual composition but also in the observation of behavioral codes in carnally charged spaces. - 90
Variety
This is essentially an absorbing and intelligent exploration of queer desire spiced up with thriller elements. - 90
The Dissolve
Even when the plot kicks in and the stakes get raised, there’s a casualness to Guiraudie’s approach that’s singular and admirably defiant of genre expectations. He’s setting a scene. Tension insinuates itself later. - 83
The Playlist
Guiraudie creates an ambiance of eerie atmospherics that is at once crisp and observant, and oddly dreamlike, or nightmarish. - 83
Entertainment Weekly
The movie is voyeuristic, sure, but in a way that evokes Alfred Hitchcock's "Rear Window" more than William Friedkin's "Cruising." - 80
The Hollywood Reporter
Stranger by the Lake invites you into its alluring and peaceful world, only to gradually uncover the darkness beneath it.
