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The Lighthouse






How long have we been on this rock? Five weeks? Two Days? Where are we? Help me to recollect

It's almost as if Robert Eggers was possessed by David Lynch and they crafted The Lighthouse on some LSD. To say that the film is a little weird would be an understatement. The Lighthouse cracks with enough "WTF" moments, along with old-sea style dialogue that the casual movie-goer would walk out in ten minutes...as my wife did when she left me alone in the basement to finish the film.

Where does on begin in describing the movie? The best I can tell is that it involves two Lighthouse Keepers being stranded on a remote island after a terrible storm ravages through. They slowly realize their relief team isn't coming and they go mad while waiting for them, each thinking the other man is up to no good.

Throughout the film there is an ominous fog horn that feels never ending. Eggers wants to annoy you, not enough to have you leave the film, but enough to have you uneasy. For me, it helped transport me to that damn Lighthouse. The look, feel and sound of this movie is masterful. It will be timeless. When directors are concerned with the latest technology and cutting edge special effects, this black and white, 1.19:1 aspect ratio, two man "stage play" will outlast them all. I don't know if any other movie in the last few years has been able to transport me as much as this has.

In addition to that are the two performances, the material seems to be an actor's dream. Robert Pattinson has gotten a bad reputation because of the Twilight movies, but the work he's been in post Twilight has been truly amazing stuff. He wanted to do this movie because he wanted a chance to do something weird. Mission accomplished. I suggest people check out his performance in Good Times as well. In the film, you never know who to trust, what to believe and the unreliable narrator motif employed here adds just the right amount of tension. The film is bonkers and hilarious at the oddest times. One scene has Dafoe pleading with Pattinson about liking his cooking. It's comical, until he goes into a monologue driven tirade of a hex and it turns sour in seconds.

This is a film about watching two men go mad. Don't expect a lot of story, plot or showy camerawork, or even answers to what the hell is going on out there. It helps to know a bit of Greek Mythology going in so you can see the references and subtext. The Lighthouse is unique, it's different and it's a strange ride from start to finish. One that will have many people theorizing different things, I know I've been working on mine.