Well first of all, I must say that you have to be in a particular state of mind when you sit down to watch the 2021 movie "The Pond" from writer Dusan Bulic and director Petar Pasic.

Why? Well, because "The Pond" is not your average mystery horror movie. Nay, "The Pond" transcends the bonds of what is considered average entertainment, and it brings something cosmic and something that borders on madness to the game. For better or worse. Now, some may enjoy this, like I did, while others will take aversion to this particular movie.

The storyline is nicely constructed, though it can hardly be said that it is a fast paced movie or a particularly eventful movie. So if you are looking for such things, then you will be bored mindless with "The Pond", I guarantee it. "The Pond" is a very slow paced movie and little happens, but the story is nicely written by Dusan Bulic and gradually piles on more and more strange events, slight madness and just general bizarre weirdness.

The acting in the movie was good. And I wasn't familiar with a single actor or actress in the movie, not that the movie was abundant with performers, mind you. But I enjoy watching movies with new and unfamiliar faces, as I am not associating them with previously portrayed characters in other movies.

While the storyline is slow and rather uneventful, the movie is just permeated so well by a very malignant atmosphere, one that slowly sinks in and festers. And the music score for the movie really helps to paint a bleak picture and helps the descend into madness greatly along. And there is a sense of isolation and helplessness to the movie, that definitely also worked well in favor of the overall feel of the movie.

"The Pond" is a movie of a very acquired taste, and I doubt that it is a movie that will do overly well with the average viewer.

Despite having lots of things working for it, I have to admit that the movie just lacked that particular ingredient to make it pop and stand out. Ultimately, "The Pond" is a mundane movie that attempts to achieve much more than director Petar Pasic could deliver. It was a shame really, because this movie could have been magnificent.

My rating of "The Pond" settles on a mediocre five out of ten stars. I liked the movie, but it just didn't stand out. And while the movie is atmospheric and have some interesting aspects to it, it just didn't bring enough contents to the table. And this is, without a doubt, not a movie that you will watch more than once - provided you manage to endure through the slow paced storyline the first time.

The film can be vague, but it should be understandable by your audience. Also, you need to give enough interesting character dialogue and show progression not to lose your viewer. Following general horror cliches with creepy kids, occult imagery, scary faces, and frightening toilet doors are not enough.

The Pond contains a very hazy and muffled general idea about hell, God, religion, and humanity. This is not, however, well communicated in the film besides some random disconnected pseudophilosophical dialogue delivered through acting so stiff its density cannot be penetrated by any known material in the world.

So, if you are not willing to bleed your brain you will most likely just feel extremely bored and confused throughout the film. Most viewers will catch the obvious symbolism (and homages to the classic films and literature) like the seven deadly sins projected through the characters, seven days of creation, and the circles, oh man, the circles. But these details serve no real purpose but to make the last 5 minutes of the film almost understandable.

Confused viewers might think this movie is too deep and smart for them just because it makes no sense - but it's not.

They should've just stuck to something understandable and time-tested. Want to show a visual representation of hell - borrow more from Jacob's Ladder, 1408, whatever. Want to tell a creepy occult story with interesting ideas buffed with existential crisis? Copy True Detective Season 1. Oh, wait, they have already done that. Want to explore religion? Make a dialogue-based film like The Man From Earth in the cool location you have, why not.

Just not everything at once.

I can't recommend this. 3/10, 1 star for the looks and visuals, 1 for the soundtrack (which felt confused about what it was trying to follow),1 for Paul Leonard Murray's acting.

I decided to write this to explain what what went on in the film. There will be spoilers. In the film, our main character, the professor, is researching... something. The hypothesis behind this research was so bizarre that the university he worked for forced him into sabbatical to cope with the mental illness that produced his ideas. We learn early on that instead of resting the professor travels daily to an island in the middle of a nearby pond to continue his work in isolation, much to the chagrin of his concerned colleague whom he still communicates with via video calls. The island is inhabited by several odd characters: the boatman who is always falling asleep, the chess player who is constantly eating cookies, the maintenance man who exists in a constant state of near rage, and two very bratty children who appear to be sisters. The only other characters in the film are the professor's colleague, his girlfriend and his daughter. After a rather intense conversation with his colleague we learn the professor began his work after the death of his wife. The closer he gets to proving his hypothesis he becomes increasingly paranoid, reality distorts, people around him start to behave oddly and things generally get (more) weird and surreal (Spoilers from here on out) as character motivations begin to either change or become clear. His girlfriend, who is a former student, is revealed to be working with the professor's colleague in an attempt to either prevent or steal the professor's research. At the close of the 2nd act we learn that the professor's hypothesis is that the world is actually Hell, and he has proven it with his research. His ultimate goal is humanity's escape from Hell which, upon changing our ways after learning we are indeed in Hell, can actually be accomplished. He explains this in a conversation with his colleague and sends his research to him via video call. The colleague receives the data only to launch into a monologue about how this should have been his discovery. He then reveals that he knows the professor is right because of a dream he had and, in one of the film's most chilling scenes, recites a song he heard in the dream while he calmly puts on his coat and hat, opens a window, and jumps to his death while the professor looks on in helpless horror. Once he composes himself, the professor has a revelation. His girlfriend, his colleague, and the inhabitants of the island are the seven princes of hell, all represented by the animal that coincides with the sins they lord over, and all are trying to prevent his discovery. His girlfriend is represented by the goat = lust. His colleague is represented by the snake = envy. One of the little girls is represented by the peacock = pride. The other by the frog = greed. The chess player, the boar = gluttony. The boatman, the turtle = sloth. And the maintenance man, the cat = wrath. Finally, the man wearing a mask of branches is the King of Hell. The professor now knows his daughter is in mortal danger, so he gives her his research, puts her in the boat and sends her away, while the princes of hell wait for him on shore. As she drifts off the King of Hell rises from the underworld while the professor appears imprisoned in what looks to be an insane asylum having a conversation with the chess player. The chess player explains that the King of Hell has chosen the professor's daughter as his next human host, which was the goal all along. As he does the film cuts to the King of Hell approaching the professor's daughter, who tosses the research aside, puts on a mask, and walks away with the King. The chess player tells the professor "You lost this one friend. Checkmate. Or should I say: 'the king is dead. Long live the king'." The last thing we see is the professor's daughter sitting on a pile of thatch like a throne. The world will stay in Hell. The singing of the song is heard as the credits roll: Do not wake him up he is dreaming. If he opens his eyes he will not see us anymore. If he wakes up we will cease to exist. If we stop praying to him he will have nightmares. If it may be so our world will stay in Hell. So keep quiet, he is asleep. Lets sing in silence while he dreams. He dreams of the world while the world dreams of him. In the silence of a noise, in the darkness of the light. Eternal in the end.