Shadow Lake (1999)

**_Murder mystery set in the wintery landscapes of rural Ontario_**

When the body of a man who’s been missing for 14 years is discovered in a bay of Muskoka Lake, an Ontario Provincial Police officer (Graham Greene) tries to put the pieces of the puzzle together to discern what went down. Joy Tanner plays the daughter of the diseased.

“Shadow Lake” (1999) is a well-done crime drama with the superb setting of snowy Canada, focusing on a grand lodge that hails back to 1910. It’s a made-for-TV Canadian production reminiscent of Andy Griffith’s “Winter Kill” from 25 years earlier. Another comparison, in ways, is “The Legend of Wolf Lodge” (aka “Into the Fire”). This is arguably on par with the former, but way superior to the latter.

The backstory is convoluted and the clues to where such-and-such are located get eye-rolling, yet the flick works if you’re in the mood for a murder mystery and appreciate the chilly lakeside milieu. Things that don’t make sense are elucidated at the climax, along with effective surprises.

The quality cast is rounded out by: Gabriel Hogan as the renovator of the Inn; Frederic Forrest as the eccentric ex-sheriff; Shirley Douglas as the disillusioned mother of the daughter; Roberta Maxwell & Michael Hogan as the former owners of the hotel; and Mag Ruffman as genial local.

If you like movies like “The Chill Factor” and “A Simple Plan,” you’ll probably appreciate “Shadow Lake.” One actor starts to ham it up, but that’s the way his part was written, obviously inspired by “The Shining,” just more lowkey.

It runs 1 hour, 34 minutes, and was shot in Bala, Ontario, which is a 2-hour drive north of Toronto. The hotel featured (as the Shadow Lake Inn) happens to be the Bala Bay Inn, which is still in business today.

GRADE: B