Caddo Lake
Written and directed by Logan George and Celine Held
Starring Dylan O'Brien, Eliza Scanlen, Diana Hopper, Lauren Ambrose
Runtime 1 hour and 39 minutes
MPAA Rating PG-13
Streaming Release: October 10th, MAX

by Mo Moshaty, Staff Writer

Caddo Lake, dropping on Max this October 10th, brings a familiar mix to the table: missing girls, a location rife with secrets and the supernatural permeation of its central characters. The story kicks off with the disappearance of an eight-year-old girl, and as you’d expect, things spiral into a series of strange connections to past deaths, stirring up a family’s dark history. With M. Night Shyamalan producing and Celine Held and Logan George, the team behind 2018’s Caroline, and 2020’s Topside, directing, our hopes are for rich atmosphere and emotional tugs.

The focus of Caddo Lake is on Paris (Dylan O’Brien) and Ellie (Eliza Scanlen), both dealing with unresolved trauma involving their parents. Ellie’s stepsister Anna (Caroline Falk) mysteriously vanishes, triggering a search that forces Ellie and Paris to confront their painful pasts. There’s a clear parallel between them: Paris struggles with guilt over his mother’s death, having been unable to save her after a tragic accident, while Ellie is grappling with the disappearance of her father years earlier. These unresolved issues have driven a wedge between Ellie and her mother, Celeste (Lauren Ambrose), while Paris finds himself at odds with his father, Ben (Sam Hennings).

The real strength of Caddo Lake lies in its performances. Dylan O’Brien and Eliza Scanlen deliver powerful portrayals of Paris and Ellie, both weighed down by grief and fear. O’Brien’s emotional depth enhances Paris’ search for answers, while Scanlen brings raw vulnerability to Ellie, perfectly capturing the tension of a young woman torn between love and resentment. Lauren Ambrose also stands out as Celeste, a desperate mother with an intense, believable performance. When the sheriff (Dave Maldonado) reveals past Child Protective Services involvement, the reasons for Ellie’s bitterness toward her mother becomes clearer, making Scanlen's portrayal even more compelling. Eric Lange, as Anna’s father Daniel, adds complexity to the family dynamic, though the script doesn’t fully explore his character. Despite the heavy subject matter and strong performances, the film stays on the surface, never going deep enough to make us care about the characters all the way through to the end.

Visually, the film gets off to a strong start, thanks to its haunting setting—the real Caddo Lake on the Texas-Louisiana border, famously constructed by the devastation of the 1811 New Madrid Earthquake. This eerie, cypress-filled landscape adds an unsettling tone that perfectly fits the mysterious vibe. Held and George were clearly inspired by the natural beauty of the location, but the movie doesn’t dig deeper into its environmental undertones, which is sadly a missed opportunity. The film introduces natural phenomena like fluctuating water levels and returning wildlife, which could have been a rich metaphor of death, grief and acceptance or work parallel to the unfolding mystery. However, these environmental elements don’t seem to carry any deeper meaning or relevance to the story, making them feel more like missed opportunities than integral parts of the film’s message.

One of the film's major shortcomings is its reliance on characters exposition. Talking through mystery, rather than allowing it to unravel naturally. In a mystery-thriller, where tension and suspense are key, this approach diminishes the excitement. By the time the big reveals occur, the story feels more like a series of discussions about what happened, rather than presenting the twists in a more dynamic and engaging way.

While Caddo Lake seems to have a promising premise and strong performances, these structural and narrative weaknesses prevent it from being a fully satisfying mystery.