Sure, that kind of experimental provocation is fun in its own twisted way, but it feels like a missed opportunity to be more than just "fun." With its incredible level of detail, “ The Witch” transported us back to its era and made its horror tangible. It’s an easy film to admire with both in its ambition and execution, but there’s a creeping sense that it doesn’t really add up to much more than a bit of a self-aware poke in the eye, and the film doesn't quite stick the landing to make that feeling go away. From the decision to shoot it in gray 4:3 ratio to heighten the claustrophobia to the non-stop cacophony of noise-it feels like if they don’t kill each other, the waves or storm will-“The Lighthouse” is a sensory assault. Pattinson, Dafoe, and an angry seagull may be the stars of “The Lighthouse” but this is a film that’s constantly calling attention to the choices of its director and creative team. Pattinson throws himself entirely into the role and it’s fun to watch. He doesn’t just need to survive, he needs this job to climb out of the hole of life. He needs the light. He imbues Ephraim with desperation, the reasons for which are revealed later, that makes his plight more tragic. He's hysterical and annoying in equal measure.Īnd Pattinson is even better. In a long line of daring performances recently (“ The Lost City of Z,” “ High Life”), this may be his best work. As the old-timer of the two, Dafoe’s Thomas gets to remain tantalizingly vague for a while in that we’re not sure if he’s just a jerk or someone actively trying to destroy the person making him beans. This is not a buddy movie, but one that reminds us that nothing may be scarier than being stuck with someone you can’t stand.ĭafoe does what sometimes feels like a salty dog caricature-if they ever do a live-action “Simpsons” movie, he’s the man for the Sea Captain-but it’s a captivating performance. “The Lighthouse” takes on the tenor of a slow-motion car crash, from which you know there will be no survivors. A film that is already in experimental territory from its opening scene gets more and more surreal, allowing us to question which one of these guys will go crazy first and what the repercussions will be. Not only does he start to become obsessed with what exactly happens at the top of the lighthouse, but he has increasingly terrifying visions between bouts of self-gratification and back-breaking labor. Thomas refers to Ephraim in diminutive terms like “lad” and orders him around when he’s not telling a long-winded story, or farting.Įphraim toils and troubles all day, develops a rivalry with a seagull, and is forced to listen to Thomas’ tall tales over dinner before his boss heads up to the light that Ephraim has been denied. He orders around Pattinson’s Ephraim, making sure he takes care of all of the daily duties like cleaning and repairing but always reminding him who’s in charge. Thomas, played by Dafoe, is the older one and the boss of the operation. It opens with the two men, played by Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, arriving to work a shift at a lighthouse on the edge of the world. This is a movie that will be listed as “black and white” but would more accurately be called “gray.” There are few distinct blacks or whites in a film that looks like an overcast evening even during the day. Life is bleak for Thomas and Ephraim from the first gloomy frame of “The Lighthouse.” And I mean gloomy.
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