I thought Thom Arizmendi and Austin Parks Stewart’s new movie Wake had so much potential for a great thrill, but it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. It started off strong with a spooky horror vibe by hinting that something mysterious was going to happen for sure, but it really fell short of expectations. The story revolves around Lake Reed, played by Fivel Stewart, who dreams of landing the lead role in a remake of an old film called “Wake.” Before her audition, she goes to meet and seek advice from Corin Able, played by Susan Reno, who starred in the original film. As they talk about the movie, both characters’ shady pasts come to light. They dive into dark emotions and haunting memories to help Lake improve her acting craft. But by the end, something sinister happened to both of them. What exactly was it? We will find out from this film explainer.Â
Spoilers Ahead
What happened to Lake in the past?
As we meet Lake Reed, the aspiring actress who wanted to star in the remake of the movie “Wake,” we get to know about her dark past. Since she was a young girl, Lake spent most of her time with her father because her mother was very ill and had been in the hospital for as long as she could remember. She was a lonely but observant kid. She used to watch her father struggle to pay the hospital bills and other expenses because they did not have enough money to afford them. Even though she wanted to lend a hand, she was too young to do much on her own, but she felt her father’s pain deeply. After some time, Lake’s father brought her mother back home because they couldn’t afford the hospital bills anymore. They took care of her at home, but it wasn’t easy. There were still medicine bills to pay, which added to their troubles even more. Her father became exhausted and desperate, unable to find a solution. In a moment of despair, he tragically decided to end her mother’s suffering by a horrible act—he laced her food with acid as he hoped that it would end her pain. Lake knew nothing about this plan. One day, when Lake went to the kitchen to bring her mother food, she accidentally spilled the very acid on her hand, and it badly burned her fingers. She then brought the food to her mother and saw her coughing up blood, and then eventually she died before her eyes. It was a heartbreaking moment, and Lake couldn’t bring herself to intervene or confront her father about what he had done. She knew the truth but felt unable to turn against him. This guilt haunts her to this day, especially when she looks at her burned fingers—a constant reminder of the sin of silence and not standing up for her mother.
What happened to Corin?
Corin was the lead actress in the original “Wake” movie, and starring in it was a big deal for her. She never imagined it would win her an Academy Award, but it did, and she was over the moon. She felt like her career was finally on track. However, everything changed tragically after the awards night. On her way home, her car crashed. When she woke up in the hospital bed, she was terrified at the state she found herself in. What scared her even more was the news she received—she was paralyzed from the waist down. Her dreams of becoming a great actress seemed shattered in an instant. It felt like everything she had worked for was slipping away. The pain from that moment never quite left her; she could not move on.
Did Corin help Lake?
Lake seemed like a wannabe actress, but a very desperate one. She had heard from a lost journalist named Jodie Halifax’s interview that Corin now lived in a secluded house far away from everyone. Corin wanted to avoid fans, reporters, and all the questions about how her life was after the accident. Obviously, these things upset her, and it was understandable. Lake still went to her house even after knowing this. When she saw the gates were locked, she went as far as trespassing to get inside and meet her. She was desperate to meet Corin because she was going to play Theodora, the role Corin originally played, in the remake of “Wake.”
Lake wanted some tips from her. But she knew that introducing herself as a wannabe actress might not get her inside, so she lied and said she was a reporter there for an interview. Corin’s caretaker, Tabitha, was repulsed and made it clear she wouldn’t allow anyone to bother Corin, who was old and sick. In a desperate move, Lake sneaked into Corin’s room and pleaded with her for an interview. At first, Corinne was unsure, but seeing the young girl so desperate, she finally agreed. However, Tabitha called the media house where Lake claimed to work and found out that Lake didn’t work there. Tabitha then revealed Lake’s real reason for being there: to get tips and tricks to master the role of Theodora. To everyone’s surprise, Corin was pleased to see Lake’s desperation and hunger for fame and mastery of her craft. She decided to help her, but first, she offered Lake some strange-smelling tea made by Tabitha, saying it was full of healthy herbs. As they talked, Lake started to notice something odd about Corin’s method. Corin was helping Lake learn her lines, but she was also pushing her to delve into her past and explore her deepest, darkest thoughts and emotions to share them with Corin, and she claimed it was all for her acting. Lake felt uncomfortable about this. So, she snooped around the house when she pretended to go to the bathroom, only to find an old tape recorder with Jodie’s interview on it—the very lost journalist whose interview had led Lake here. In the recording, Jodie had also been offered some questionable tea by Tabitha. Lake wondered if Jodie wasn’t lost after all but had maybe been killed by Tabitha and Corin. She didn’t understand why. In the recording, Jodie mentioned feeling like Corin could understand her thoughts without her even speaking them, as if she were hallucinating and spilling all her secrets to Corin. This scared Lake. Just as she came back and wanted to confront Corin about what she did to Jodie after faking an audition with Theodora’s monologue, suddenly she lost her senses.
And then the ending came, which I had to watch twice to understand because it was so unexpected. It turned out that both Corin and Tabitha were working together. They targeted young, emotionally broken people, using spells and charms to control them with spell-laced tea. Their goal was for Corin to regain her lost sensation in her legs and take over the world. When Lake regained consciousness, she found herself tied up and realized their plan. She understood what really happened to Jodie—but Jodie wasn’t as broken as Lake, so she wasn’t as useful. Lake’s trauma from seeing her mother killed made her a perfect target for Corinne and Tabitha. Lake wanted to escape, but it was too late. When she came to her senses, she discovered she had been transformed into the old Corin, while Corin had taken over Lake’s young body. Now, Corin could pursue her dreams of being an actress or anything else she wanted, while Lake was trapped in Corinne’s old body. Even if Lake tried to tell people what really happened, who would believe her? No one, and that was the sad part.
