This article contains spoilers.
Caddo Lake (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
“Caddo Lake” opens with Paris and his mother, Anna, underwater. Unfortunately, Anna starts to have seizures and is unable to save herself. On the other hand, Paris gets out of the water safely. At present, Paris helps clean Caddo Lake, as the water is shallow. After work, Paris drops off his father at a funeral and refuses to attend the service, afraid of running into his girlfriend.
In another part of the Caddo Lake, Ellie hangs out with her step-sister Anna after school. Since Ellie has gotten into a fight with her mother, Celeste, Ellie has been sleeping at her friend Claire’s house. In Paris’s case, Paris thinks the doctors misdiagnosed his mother’s illness as she had seizures after many years, and that too while stuck underwater. The doctor, however, dismisses it, saying Paris’s mother was unfortunate to have another attack at the wrong time.
What happens to Anna?
After talking to the doctor, Paris heads to his trailer, and his girlfriend is waiting for him. In another timeline, Ellie stays home and attends the family dinner. At the table, Anna brings out dead moths, saying she found them by the Goat Island. After dinner, Ellie needs her mother’s signature for school. Along with the signature, Ellie is adamant about wanting her father’s death certificate. The mention of Ellie’s father infuriates Celeste. Meanwhile, Paris and his girlfriend sleep together, and she asks Paris not to shut off from her ever again.
While the family is chatting, Ellie looks for her father’s death certificate. At this time, Anna shows Ellie Celeste’s necklace, which symbolizes the zodiac cancer. When Celeste catches Ellie going through the papers for the death certificate, they get into a fight. In anger, Ellie leaves to stay at her friend Claire’s house. That night, Celeste calls Ellie continuously as Anna has gone missing. Immediately, Ellie rushes home. At first, Celeste and Daniel assume Anna has followed Ellie to Claire’s house. Once they see Ellie, they realize Anna is lost and call the police immediately. When Daniel leaves to take Ellie’s boat, it has gone missing.
Meanwhile, Paris cleans the lake and finds a pipe. So Paris decides to follow it, which leads him to an old pump jack. When Paris tries to communicate this to his co-worker, the walkie-talkie does not work. While exploring the area, Paris has a bizarre experience, and his palm starts to shake. Hearing his partner’s voice, Paris heads back. Paris notices something stuck to the motor. He checks it and discovers a chain that reminds him of something. At home, Paris sees the chain his mother had, like the one he found on the lake. Later that night, the cops find Anna’s boat, and Ellie realizes the life jacket is missing.
What do Ellie and Paris experience in Caddo Lake?
When Paris tries to explain his experience on the Caddo Lake, he realizes his girlfriend doesn’t trust him. After some digging, Paris discovers the first time his mother had seizures was when the water level on Caddo Lake was low, just like his experience now when the water levels are low. The look on the girlfriend’s face suggests she thinks Paris is mad.
Paris is annoyed when his girlfriend asks where their relationship is heading. Meanwhile, Ellie is furious to see Anna’s boat enter the house. When Ellie tries to help, Celeste gets angry. So Ellie tries to comfort Celeste, saying Anna will come back, and just because Ellie’s father went missing, Celeste should not assume the same about everyone. Now, Celeste reveals the truth about Ellie’s father. Ellie’s father left Celeste for another woman who attacked her when Ellie was a baby. It was Ellie’s father’s choice not to return.
Hearing this, Ellie is devastated and more determined to find Anna. That night, Ellie sets out to find Anna, taking Anna’s boat. In the middle of the lake, Ellie is stuck, and at the same time, cops look for Anna. To avoid being seen by the cops, Ellie hides in the woods. As Ellie walks inside, she has a weird experience, and her boat is missing when she looks back. Now Ellie takes a boat ride from someone she knows. When Ellie comes home, she realizes she has returned to the past. The situation gets bizarre as Ellie watches herself get off of her boat.
Tensed and curious, Ellie sneaks away, returning her boat to where the time slip occurred. Now Ellie screams out Anna’s name, and on the other side, Paris can hear Ellie’s call for Anna. Suddenly, Ellie finds Anna and realizes there is a time slip, and Ellie has returned to the previous month. When Ellie comes back home, she realizes the mess she has caused. So Ellie tries to warn Daniel that Anna may disappear, but Daniel is mad at Ellie, so Daniel ignores what Ellie says.
Who is Ellie’s father?
At the same time, Paris is in the woods and finds a young Anna hurt from a branch sticking out of her back. So Paris helps Anna by taking her to some locals. When Paris meets these men, he realizes he is in 1952. Now Paris realizes that the woods act like a portal for time travel. Paris runs in the woods, traveling back and forth in time.
At the same time, Ellie is in the same location when Daniel calls her. So Ellie informs Daniel about the area but sees the extinct moths approaching her. Seeing a rope on the boat, Ellie ties one end to the boat, wraps the other to herself, and starts walking. As Paris crosses timelines, he stumbles upon the rope, which takes him to Ellie’s timeline.
Unfortunately, Paris is using Anna’s missing boat, so the cops take him into custody. When Paris tries to escape, he falls into the water and hurts himself. Hence, the cops take Paris to the hospital. Meanwhile, Ellie was in 2005 but is determined to find Anna. So Ellie visits the supermarket hoping to find Anna. However, Ellie does not find Anna but sees a car, and inside it is the exact necklace Anna had shown Ellie. So Ellie breaks into the car and takes the necklace.
The car owner yells at Ellie for breaking in, so Ellie questions the woman, asking about the necklace. The woman says it is Anna Lang’s necklace, the mother of the man who went missing. The picture on the flyer is of Paris. When the woman calls her baby Ellie, the older Ellie realizes this is Celeste (her mother) and Paris is her father.
Caddo Lake (2024) Movie Ending Explained:
Is Paris alive or dead?
Confused and terrified, Ellie looks for Anna Lang’s details in the cyber café. There, Ellie also found pictures of Anna’s school photo from 1952. Meanwhile, the cops are not letting Paris go, so he makes an excuse to visit the washroom and attempts to escape. The cops find out and chase after Paris. At the same time, Ellie makes her way back through the portal as well. When Paris reaches the dam, he assumes he won’t be able to return if he does not leave now, so Paris jumps off the bridge and drowns. Just in time, Ellie returns to her time, thanks to the rope she had tied earlier. However, as soon as Paris dies, the rope cuts off, and the portal is closed.
Thankfully, the cops and Daniel are around the area to rescue Ellie. In the boat, Ellie wholeheartedly accepts Daniel as her family, and Daniel apologizes for not being more present with Ellie. Daniel also mentions Paris to Ellie, who is unsurprised as she knows Paris is trying to return before the portal closes. At home, Celeste watches the news, and Paris’s photo comes up. Ellie confirms, saying that the man is her father. To comfort Celeste, Ellie shows Anna’s school picture from 1952 and explains that neither Anna nor Paris left because they wanted to. This moment brings Ellie and Celeste closer together.
The last scene is Ellie’s way of comforting Celeste, saying that even though they won’t find their loved ones in this timeline, they must be grateful that they are alive in another timeline. The film had one crossover after another, with many relationships interlinked. Paris is Anna’s son, the same Anna who went missing. Since Paris rescued Anna in 1952, Anna has not been able to return and grows up and has a family in that timeline. So, in reality, Anna is Ellie’s grandmother.
Paris dates a woman before and after his mother’s death, and that is none other than Celeste. Before Paris knew he would be a father, he had traveled through the portal. So Paris is Ellie’s biological father. The woman Celeste ran into was Ellie; Paris never knew he had a child. This caused a misunderstanding as Celeste believed Paris did not want to do anything with her or Ellie. Ultimately, Paris’s death cut the connection to the time portals, preventing Ellie from traveling back in time.
