Synopsis

Feeling it’s time for a change in her life, Dr Kate Forester leaves her suburban Illinois practice for a job at a busy Chicago hospital. One thing she is reluctant to leave behind, though, is the uniquely beautiful house she has been renting, an artfully designed refuge with large windows that overlooks a placid lake. A place in which she felt her true self. It is a winter morning in 2006. On her way to the city, Kate leaves a note in the mailbox for lake house’s next tenant, asking him to forward her mail and noting that the inexplicable painted paw prints he might notice by the front door were there when she moved in. But when the next tenant arrives, he sees a much different picture. Alex Wyler, a talented but frustrated architect working at a nearby construction site, finds the lake house badly neglected: dusty, dirty, and overgrown with weeds. And strangely, there's no sign of paw prints anywhere. But later, while painting the weather-beaten jetty, a stray dog run across the fresh paint, leaving paw prints exactly where she said they’d be. Two people. Two worlds. Two years apart. Two people in love. Can they become one? Can love intervene and change their fate?

What The Critics Say

"Those wishing to suppress real-life traumas may submit to the deliriously stupid romantic time-travel drama "The Lake House"; I did and had a jolly time.". David Edelstein NEW YORK MAGAZINE "The Lake House is a pleasant, engrossing little movie, with some wit and delicacy and a keep-you-on-your-toes narrative." Shawn Levy OREGONIAN "This is one of my favorite movies so far this year." Richard Roeper EBERT & ROEPER "A supernatural romantic melodrama in the vein of Ghost, though not as trashily enjoyable or charmingly sexy, this enigmatic movie, a remake of a mediocre Korean meller, reteams Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves for the first time since Speed." Emanuel Levy EMANUELLEVY.COM

"The joy lies in getting there, with lush visual direction by Alejandro Agresti and appealing performances by Ms Bullock and her old Speed co-star Keanu Reeves." Nancy Churnin DALLAS MORNING NEWS "The Lake House is made of glass, but the view straight through it is rather pleasant all the same." Peter Canavese GROUCHO REVIEWS "The sheer novelty of it all helps make the film seem a pleasant and refreshing change of pace." William Arnold SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER "The most romantic movie since 'Somewhere In Time'" Jackie K Cooper JACKIEKCOOPER.COM

The Inside Story While their careers have gone down different paths it seems they were, like their characters Alex Wyler and Kate Forster, destined to join forces again, as they did in the 1994 highly successful thriller, "Speed". Unlike "Speed", Keanu Reeves says, "I'm not the hero here and she's not the damsel in distress. It's not about two people seeking someone or something to make themselves whole; it's about two people who discover that together they can create something new." That something new is trying to find a way to each other when their lives are two years apart. And yes, it is a love story. In fact, according to Sandra Bullock who plays Dr Kate Forster, "The Lake House is an epic love story. It's about possibilities and impossibilities and the decisions we make on our way to finding the right person. It invites you to believe in the impossible and the power of certain connections to challenge any obstacle because you want so much for these two people to find a way." And, when it comes to those two roles, it helps to have two stars who have maintained a strong frendship over the ensuing years since the last worked together. "Keanu was my first film partner. Prior to that I had been in supporting roles but in Speed I was really part of a team. I have a great affection for him," Bullock states. "We’ve never lost track of each other. The minute we started rehearsals for "The Lake House" it was like coming home. It’s an understanding and trust you cannot explain." Reeves says he finds his good friend Bullock, inspiring, noting that even though they haven’t worked together since since "Speed", they have "stayed in touch and really enjoy each other’s company. It was great to work with her again. She gives Kate a mix of vulnerability and strength, and that feeling of being present yet somehow very distant also, which is one of the intriguing aspects of the story. There’s so much she has to convey silently. Plus, she still has her light touch and sense of humor." Bullock says it's easy to tell that they get on so well, "because we argue all the time!" "The Lake House" is based on the original 2000 South Korean film "Il Mare", which explores the intriguing concept of a communication across time. An audience favorite at the Pusan International Film Festival in South Korea, it caught the attention and imagination of producing partners Doug Davison and Roy Lee, founders of Vertigo Entertainment. "It was a love story unlike anything we had ever seen before, unique and complex," Davison recalls. "Its theme about the power of love and how it can change a person's life is what really affected us when we first saw it. In the three and a half years it took to see this project through to fruition I've never stopped being passionate about it." Being a Korean language film, did it present any difficulties in the conversion? Not according to Roy Lee who said, "it was easy to imagine the whole movie remade with an American cast and set in the United States because the story is absolutely universal and there is nothing in it that makes it uniquely Korean or ties it to any specific culture." When it came to writing the films script, Lee and Davidson turned to Pulitzer Prize, Tony Award and Drama Desk Award winner David Auburn. "David's writing is captivating and he was a wonderful fit for this non-linear, unusual love story," says Davidson. "He delivered an amazing script." Also impressed with the script was Silver Condor and Golden Calf Award winning Argentinean director Alejandro Agresti. "I like the way we see the stories unfold, how we learn about these two people," says Agresti. "Also, I like how the story plays with time and how these two fall in love while existing in two different times and not being able to meet. At first they think it's a game, leaving these letters for each other. But what seems illogical comes to have its own logic." "The Lake House" is significantly visual in its storytelling, allowing viewers, as Bullock explains, "the freedom to interpret and project your own feelings onto the story as it unfolds, more easily than you might if we were constantly telling you what to feel. It captures that instinctive feeling you sometimes get of pieces falling into place. Someone or something might come into your life and just at that moment something seemingly unrelated that happened years ago just clicks and you see how one is connected to the other. Maybe one thing has to happen in order to bring something else about, but we don't often see the whole picture." In "The Lake House" that 'one thing' is Kate leaving a note in the letterbox of the lakeside apartment for the new tenant. Letters appear as if by magic and Kate, like most of us would suspects its a bit of a trick. Then she discovers the sender and her are living in different places in time, two years apart. "They're kept apart for so long and things are so difficult for them it's heartbreaking," says Bullock. "You really long to see these two people get together almost as much as they do." This travelling across time meant that director Alejandro Agresti was kept on his toes. "Every shot was set up a certain way for a reason and everything in the shot, be it furniture or art or a detail just in camera range, can connect directly to something else or be symbolic, so that Kate and Alex are always in touch, whether or not they're aware of it," he explained. "Even if they aren't in the same room, an action on Kate's part will affect Alex's world and vice versa." While the two are living seperate lives and pursuing their careers, there are times when the two appear onscreen opposite each other as though they are verbally communicating across time. "Cinematically, by juxtaposing Alex's scenes with Kate's, you see them essentially sharing the same space," says Reeves. That he says draws the audience closer to the characters because of the "intensity and intimacy of their dialogue." Even though it's something we know is improbable you do feel for Alex and Kate who besides being apart still have their lives to get on with. Alex is trying to connect with his father Simon Wyler and Kate has allowed her former fiancé Morgan to re-enter her life. "Truth is," Walsh says, "there's really nothing wrong with Morgan, except that, in contrast to Alex, he's fully earth-bound. He's real. He may not have his rival's soulful depth but he clearly loves Kate and he has a great advantage in that he's right there with her." Bullock describes Morgan as a "really a great guy, the kind of guy your friends would be happy to see you with. He's open and loving and he adores Kate. Truth is, she can't deny he's everything a woman should want." Even for all his good points? "You have to realize that someone can be a perfect person," she says, "yet not be the perfect person for you." Reeves acknowleges that giving up the tangible for the unseen "is a huge risk. But so often that's exactly what you have to do in order to grow, or change, or move toward what you really want." And if you are wondering whether "The Lake House" is an actual property let me help you out. After weeks of scanning lakefront locations in Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois and Indiana and virtually every mile of the vast Lake Michigan shoreline for something that embodied all the necessary elements, "The Lake House" production team rose to the challenge and built the iconic house themselves. Location manager James McAllister ("Road to Perdition", "Batman Begins") returned to Cook County, Illinois, where he had worked a decade previously on" Evil Has a Face" at a Forest Preserve location along the tranquil, 55-acre man-made Maple Lake. It proved to be the perfect setting: naturally serene and romantic, with the surrounding texture and terrain Agresti had in mind. "The house was our most important set, the one key piece around which the story revolves, so it made sense for us to create exactly what we wanted," says production designer Nathan Crowley, Cinemagoers will quickly realize that the house is very transparent. There is a logical reason. "We didn't have the opportunity to shoot an exterior separate from the interior, as you would traditionally do," Crowley explained. "We had to shoot them together, which meant engineering and building it like a real house rather than a set." Bullock's only has one regret with "The Lake House". And what was it? "That the house was not fully functional and available for her to move in. I loved it. I was so disappointed that I couldn't keep it, move it, and at least use it as a guest house somewhere." The Verdict "Break out the tissues. It's a tear jerker. Two people, in love, two years apart. It's painful to watch purely because you feel for the two lead characters even if it is only fantasy. "The Lake House" is best described, in the nicest way, as a very nice film. Beautifully shot thanks to the talented Alar Kivilo this is a pleasure to watch even if the end brings an unashamed tear to your eyes. Very enjoyable. 3 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "THE LAKE HOUSE" stars .......
Keanu Reeves ["Speed", "Chain Reaction", "Something's Gotta Give", "The Matrix 1,2&3" and "Constantine"]; Sandra Bullock ["Speed", "While You Were Sleeping", "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood", "Crash" and "Miss Congeniality 1 & 2"]; Dylan Walsh ["Where the Heart Is", "We Were Soldiers" and "Blood Work"]; Shohreh Aghdashloo ["The Exorcism of Emily Rose", "House of Sand and Fog" and "X-Men: The Last Stand"], Ebon Moss-Bachrach ["The Royal Tenenbaums", "Mona Lisa Smile" and "Stealth"] and Christopher Plummer ["The Sound of Music", "Lock Up Your Daughters!", "Somewhere in Time" and "Twelve Monkeys"] as Simon Wyler.
"THE LAKE HOUSE" was .......
directed by Alejandro Agresti ["City Life", "Everybody Wants to Help Ernest", "Modern Crimes" and "A Less Bad World"]; screenplay by David Auburn ["Proof"]; production design by Nathan Crowley ["Behind Enemy Lines", "Insomnia", "Veronica Guerin" and "Batman Begins"]; cinematography by Alar Kivilo ["Frequency", "Hart's War" and "The Ice Harvest"]; set decoration by Meg Everist ["Welcome To Collinwood","Blue Crush" and "21 Grams"] produced by Doug Davison ["Death To Smoochy", "The Grudge", "Dark Water" and "Eight Below"] and Roy Lee ["The Ring 1 & 2", "The Grudge", "Dark Water" and "Eight Below"]. Run Time 98 minutes Rated PG[AUST] Copyright ©2006 - Warner Bros Films - All Rights Reserved Copyright Protected © 2006 - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - All Rights Reserved