By Melody Ortiz
Netflix’s “To the Lake” is another post apocalyptic series with a great deal of potential that could help it stand out from the rest.
At first glance, the series looks like any other zombie show. However, “To the Lake” introduces a virus that makes the infected fatally ill. The highly contagious virus starts with a cough, then loss of sight and, finally, death.
Unlike zombies, the infected can still speak and act somewhat human, though sometimes become aggressive.
They also do not come back from the dead and the brain is not the only way to kill them.
The biggest difference between this series and other infection-based ones is the fact that the infected are rarely seen and are not the main enemy.
The enemy is the virus itself and those who cross lines in order to contain it.
When it comes to the acting in this show, feelings are mixed.
The show is originally in Russian. Unfortunately, the English voice overs make it hard to take it seriously at times.
It also doesn’t help watching it in Russian with subtitles because often the words do not match what the actors actually say.
This comes to fruition when watching the show in English along with English subtitles.
Focusing on the plot, scenes and acting can surely help any horror/thriller fan move past these faults.
Despite the fact that most of the main characters are stereotypes (the neutral main character, the angsty teen girl, the awkward teen boy, the nagging ex wife, etc.), there are plenty of times where they surprise the audience.
The best acting by far is seen from Viktoriya Glukhikh, who plays Polina, a troubled teenager.
Glukhikh captures the extreme emotions and sulking-teen persona while still making the audience sympathetic to Polina. Glukhikh does pretty well portraying her.
Misha, played by Eldar Kalimulin, is a teen boy who is very smart, but has trouble in social situations due to Asperger’s syndrome.
The show highlights the strengths that come with this character, while describing to viewers what it really means to have Asperger’s.
Sergey, played by Kirill Käro, is the main character who keeps the audience undecided on whether or not he is likeable. Käro plays the character well, but it’s the complicated characters of Polina and Misha that steal the scenes.
The rest of the cast is amazing and will make many viewers wish they spoke Russian to fully appreciate the show.
It’s hard to pick a favorite character, not because of how much they change throughout the episodes, but because of how much viewers find out about each of them.
Hopefully, a second season is not too much to ask for, especially since the season finale leaves viewers with a big cliffhanger.
“To the Lake” was originally released last November in Russia as “Epidemiya.” Netflix picked up the movie and released it last Wednesday. Before watching the series, audiences should expect nudity, strong language, talk of depression and self-harm.