The Lighthouse (2019)
Director: Roger Eggers
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe, Valeriia Karaman, Logan Hawkes
Primary genre: Supernatural
Secondary genre: Horror
Nominated for: Best cinematography
Bursting through the horror scene with his atmospheric period piece “The Witch” in 2015, Roger Eggers’ follow up took 4 years to make and with good reason. Ignoring the traditional cliches of stories filled with paranoia and tension, Eggers embraces Lovecraftian lore, tropes and themes in an art house flick masquerading itself as mainstream horror, a merge of John Carpenter and Kubrick would be enough to describe his second feature. Cue the disappointment of individuals who prefer things straightforward and simple. Is this a character study, a psychological thriller about the descent to madness(?) or a creeping supernatural horror masterpiece where the terror comes from within ourselves?
“The Lighthouse” is not opting to answer such banal questions allowing itself to be interpret by everyone who has a passion for stories and movies. If you want limp chomping, excessive sound design and CGI eerie specters, leave now and close the door behind you. Roger and his brother Max conceived this motion picture as a rule-breaking, genre bending story electing instead to blur the realms of fantasy, reality and madness in an explosive cocktail of sensational acting amidst an isolated setting and a challenging environment.
“Yer fond of me lobster aint’ ye?”
Relying solely on its two leads, Eggers gambles a lot. Not only he has them speaking the marine language of that era (which can be tiresome by today’s standards and difficult to understand) but he also shoots them entirely in hypersaturated black and white cinematography. Theatre thespian Dafoe who gets literally better as the years pass, gives the performance of a lifetime, delivering thunderous outbursts with genuine (and unexpected vulnerability) peeling thin layers of his character scene by scene almost threatening to knock out Pattinson’s more stoic approach to his role. And this is precisely the point as these two different acting styles clash spectacularly in a stage set like a theatre play and Pattinson holds up his own against Dafoe’s gargantuan behemoth. In a role which would have broken an appealing (and mainstream) star, Pattinson fully embraces the unorthodox material giving a fearless (for his image) performance that will serve him well in the future.
The inner conflict and intimacy for the next four weeks inside the lighthouse between these wickies is the core of the story. Yet, “The Lighthouse” is more than a set up for the occurrence of supernatural shenanigans but rather it can be seen as a vivid, dank and gripping dissection of a relationship between two men. The catalyst here is of course, the lighthouse itself; a beacon of hope for ships sailing the open ocean and an adamant instrument for the incoming conflict (and worship). This has-to-keep-going light source can be seen as a metaphor for many things and at the climax, Eggers makes his intentions clear after a tumultuous rollercoaster of suspicion, isolation and despair. The brothers’ script is having fun by leaving little clues here and there only to further disorient the audience as the movie progresses slowly.
Eggers, a passionate master of atmosphere shoots in a 4:3 ratio to heighten a sense of dread and paranoia in a way we haven’t seen since Carpenter worked his magic in “The Thing” (1982). His filming approach of the phallic building assisted by the already aforementioned stellar cinematography of Egger’s regular Jarin Blaschke is that of a worshipping nature reflecting the emotional state of the characters themselves. Influences aplenty, encyclopedic cinephiles with a tendency to appreciate art and mythology will find a lot to discuss at an excruciating degree, particularly some very interesting (and taboo) concepts in a gripping story which wants to display a deep psychoanalysis under an efficiently gloomy production design.
“The Lighthouse” is not the in-your-face horror flick that many had hoped for. Taking cues from theatrical productions, it unfolds diligently making the most of its own stage and channels its energy in its mesmerizing performances. It might be seen a bit pretentious due to its unorthodox presentation, it nevertheless puts forward a compelling case for auteur driven cinema.
Gripping and dark character study
+Cinematography
+Incredible performances
+Dynamic and engaging direction
+Disoriented, ambiguous storyline
+Room for gripping interpretation
+Great atmosphere
-Not easily digestable