The Lake House
Director Alejandro Agresti must have been banking on the popularity of high-dollar stars Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves, or the cache of Korea's Il Mare on which The Lake House was based, or maybe even the hopes for sappy viewers who do not ask questions. For whatever reason, he somehow thought this train wreck was worthy of our time. Even if time miraculously became a pliable concept, as is the premise of this film, there would still be no reason to waste it on this piece of drivel.
Two beautiful people, Dr. Kate Forster (Bullock) and architect Alex Whiler (Reeves,) opt for reprieve from the fuss of the city in the form of a cabin by the lake. Alex is disenchanted and Kate is overworked, so both seek solace in the welcoming arms of the same lake house. The film opens with Kate leaving the home and Alex returning to the house that his father, a famed architect, had built. On her departure, Kate leaves a note for the next tenant in hopes that she or he might forward any of her lingering mail. Alex, the recipient of the note, instantly writes her back due to his confusion with her reference to the year being 2006 since he is living in 2004. Back and forth the two communicate via a time-jumping portal that is the mailbox at the lake house. They bicker at first about the current year, but it doesn't take them long to figure out the obvious answer: they are simply, though miraculously, living two years apart!
I know that if I had met my supposed soul mate in such an enchanting, albeit unlikely, fashion I would jump on that ship faster than you could say "Vonnegut." You would have to admit it would be one of the best 'how did you meet' stories at future cocktail parties! So simple would it be to plan an encounter, say at the hospital where Kate was working, and strike up a conversation to get the ball rolling. The part about being time-traveling pen pals wouldn't need to be discussed on the first date, after all, since Kate would not yet be in the know. Instead, viewers have to suffer through these dim-wits' pathetic attempts to court despite time differences for way too long before they discuss an attempt to actually meet. Kate's typical fears of intimacy, of course, hold them back and, although Alex valiantly courts her via time-traveled epistles, he takes his time in plotting a real, face-to-face encounter. Finally, he initiates an effective ploy for at least one meeting and, yet, somehow the two do not manage to fully integrate into ongoing, same-time existence until the movie's finale. I cannot imagine that having these star-crossed lovers meet sooner would save The Lake House, but it certainly could not have hurt.
The beautiful backdrop of Chicago's architecture plays up the screen throughout the film. However, winds of fortune most certainly do not smile upon The Lake House despite the windy city's pleasing presence. These scenes merely provide brief respite from the tediousness of the overall film.
Grades
Overall: C-
Story: C
Acting: C
Visuals: B
Originality/Innovation: B
Enjoyability: C
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