I knew little of the film before seeing it and I was blown away by the premise and production quality. At first i had trouble discerning whether it was based on a true story or not, but i found as the film progressed that this became less and less relevant to my viewing experience. I was utterly enthralled in the first half of the film, the revelation that there might be something supernatural at play was realised beautifully, with some truly terrifying moments. This ghostly suggestion never overpowers the film; the story retains its dominant themes of grief and the process of grieving. The mise-en-scene was delightful, it was highly stylized and had real dreamy take on the horror conventions. For example the shots of the 'haunted' house might have been melodramatic and cliché, however this recurring image was often offset with the wheeling stars overhead, creating an ethereal quality that set it apart. I'd recommend this film to fans of psychological horror, its spooky, moody and satisfying with some great twists!<br /><br />SPOILER ALERT! The twists in the second half of the film, though motivated and logical, were too redolent of Twin Peaks for me, so much that it detracted from my experience of Lake Mungo. Not only is the dead girl Alice PALMER (Laura Palmer being the deceased subject of Twin Peaks) but she was a young woman with a double life which was only revealed after her death. She is quoted as being a girl who 'kept it secret that she had secrets', secrets which involved a lurid affair, visions of death, and the seedy underbelly of a quiet rural town. The clues are pieced together from new footage of the girl which keeps surfacing, the deceased girl even buried evidence that is later unearthed. For all those who have seen David Lynch's fantastic series, all this will seem too familiar to ignore. The documentary style does give this similar story a new edge, as it lacks the indulgent melodrama of Twin Peaks. Also the supernatural element sets it apart,and the revelation at the end is something really original. END SPOILER<br /><br />I would have liked the nature of the element of 'video' more explored, what it means to be filmed, what kind of reality video can offer, can we trust video, can we trust our own eyes? These are notions which I think are suggested by the ironic documentary style of a fiction film but this is never really focused on. This is what was lacking for me, especially considering my qualms mentioned in the spoiler. But this film is miles ahead of modern horror and drama, 8/10.