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Destination: New Zealand
An ancient Maori legend claims that a demon heart lies in the bottom of a lake in the South Island of New Zealand, raising and lowering the water level with each heartbeat–and that’s why so many people drown there.
And on that lake sits the small, remote village of Laketop, the center of this profound, haunting mini-series, Top of the Lake.
On one cold day, a pregnant twelve-year-old Tui Mitcham walks fully clothed into that frigid lake up to her shoulders, fists clenched, ready to drown herself, only to be saved by an aide on a passing school bus. Sydney Detective Robin Griffin (Elisabeth Moss) interviews Tui to determine the identity of the father, but her inscrutable answer is “No One”. Thus begins the hunt for a rapist – and triggers Tui’s sudden disappearance, perhaps into the thousands of acres of bush in the snowcapped mountains surrounding the lake.
But Robin’s work on the case is disrupted by people who throw her off balance: her former high school sweetheart, an “old boy network” police force, Tui’s psychopathic drug lord father, and a women’s commune with an enigmatic guru. Over time, the body count piles up, the number of suspects grows, and the townspeople close ranks to thwart her. Robin also discovers that her own past is tied to the town’s secrets, and in her determination to save Tui and the baby, she may very well destroy herself.
Top of the Lake is riveting, masterful storytelling; sexy, bizarrely funny and gritty. It moves at a determined pace, carefully peeling back one layer at a time of the intricate, interwoven web of evil complicity that holds these people together. Many characters are raw, like yesterday’s deep cuts that haven’t yet scabbed over. There is rich symbolism here about the levels of paradise and hell, from the soaring mountaintops to the deepest lakebed.
The cinematography is stunning and varied, from gorgeous aerial shots of the mountains, to the striking contrast in the colors of the village and commune, to the moodiness of the sparkling, deep, eerie lake. The climax could suck the breath right out of your lungs.
So be warned—Top of the Lake may draw you in deeper than you expect – and it may not be easy to walk back out.
