The Lighthouse (2019)

 

Genre: Horror/ Drama

Time: 1h 50mins

Director: Robert Eggers

Quick Summary: Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.

Undoubtedly this is one of the strangest films I have seen, but I ended up really liking this. It's certainly an experience, but I think one that is definitely worth it. 

For much of this, I was not fully sure what was going on, which I guess is deliberate as it is never quite clear what is what. What is consistent though is the sense of dread and claustrophobia that comes from the limits of the location. As well I love the paranoia within this, though the narration is a bit hard to follow a lot of the time, it's the tone and tension of what is happening that actually makes it worth it.

One thing I found incredibly cool is how much the set is claustrophobic, making the screen frame just about square. As well I loved how tight every shot felt, like it was all crammed together which added to the tension for me. They're set up so cleverly as well, being slightly unconventional in its framing, such as behind a bunch of empty bottles that frame the main speaker of the scene, or looking down the spiral staircase of a lighthouse.

There are moments of comedy amongst the moody and weird scenes, the two men stranded on the rock endure a rocky (pun intended) relationship, by turns suspicious, angry and even savage, then there are unexpected moments of friendship fuelled by alcohol which are honestly so funny to watch. We are forced to question constantly who is mad, or perhaps madder? What is actually real and what is disillusion. 

Willem Dafoe is absolutely fantastic in this. Most of my enjoyment was just trying to understand him (thank the gods for subtitles) and honestly enjoying his performance. He constantly spouts off into rambling monologues of a crazy old sea fool or fits of rage full of old sea curses, and it is so entertaining to watch him. Robert Patterson, I enjoyed as well but not as much but anyone next to Willem Dafoe will have a hard time.

The problem with this film is that it is incredibly hard to follow and so confusing to watch at times. It's pure chaos at times. It throws in super weird and bizarre scenes at random as well, which can be unsettling to some people without warning. The dialogue is difficult to follow a lot of time leading people to not understand a single thing of what's going on. To add to this, it's actually really slow. Not much happens for a good portion of the film. You just watch these two men slowly slip into insanity. Granted, I enjoyed watching something like that, but a good portion of people will not. 

This is definitely NOT a film for everyone. In fact, I'd go so far as to say most people probably would not like the film. It's really heavy in the context of themes and references to old myths and paintings, which a lot of people would not get unless they were to look into it afterwards, so again a lot of this film can be incredibly confusing. As someone who enjoys films a lot, I appreciate this more than most. If you're looking for something that is pretty out there in weirdness, then I do recommend this. 

8/10

"Thomas Wake: What.

Ephraim Winslow: What.

Thomas Wake: What.

Ephraim Winslow: What.

Thomas Wake: What.

Ephraim Winslow: What.

Thomas Wake: What.

Ephraim Winslow: What."

"Why'd ya spill yer beans?"

" If I had a steak... I'd fuck it."

"Thomas Wake: You're too slow - you a dullard?

Ephraim Winslow: No sir.

Thomas Wake: Fooled me."