Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

The Lighthouse 

This film is a trippy well acted bizarre experience that is interesting! Robert Pattinson and Willem Defoe give top notch performances in a film with themes about paranoia and being confined to the small living conditions that their bound to and theirs a lot that goes on in the one hour and forty eight minutes of this film as I will say their is a lot of artistic expression here that may not appeal to everyone as it did get me confused at times. The film does leave things open ended and for the audience to interpret the ending and for them to choose how they think the film concludes. It is a very thought provoking film with a lot of questions that I feel I didn’t get answers too that would be probably the biggest issue I had with the film is that they discuss a ton of stuff but never resolve it or answer it it’s left to your interpretation. Besides that the film is a well acted bizarre drama that if you enjoy indie dramas you’ll enjoy this film. 

First off, This film is not what the marketing makes it out to be. The trailers promote this film as a fast paced thriller/horror which it is unsettling but I wouldn’t label it a horror though. As the film is about the descend into madness which this film captures incredibly well but don’t go into the film expecting a fast paced sailor horror film as it is a slow burn. The film like I said is an hour and forty minutes but it felt like four hours. Their is a lot I enjoyed but theirs also a lot that could of been trimmed down or cut out entirely as the film’s pacing does drag on at times and you do feel the runtime as their are scenes that are totally not needed and then their are scenes that need answers which we don’t get so the pacing could be a issue to some people as it was at times for me. It doesn’t take away or detract from its compelling narrative at hand though. 

Secondly, The performances are freaking amazing! Robert Pattinson follows up his incredible performance from 2017’s Good Time with another outstanding performance that he provides in this film. As well Willem Dafoe gives his best performance since Platoon as they both chew up every scene their in with such strong intense emotion that grips you from the moment the film starts. The two actors are the only actors in the film as the film centres on around only them and I love that as we see their character arcs and how they shift throughout the film and it’s compelling to watch unfold as the film is also as well so beautifully well shot and well lit as the lighting and camerawork on this film really makes this film come alive as a period piece and it is so immersive within the world it’s set in from the technical aspects it makes in the film it’s a beautiful film to look at that is one of the best lit and shot films I’ve seen this year. Having some truly striking imagery that is truly haunting. 

Lastly, The Lighthouse Is a well acted, well shot and well lit film with a incredibly compelling bizarre story that will have you talking about it for hours after viewing it as it is a very interesting eerie and unsettling story that definitely should be seen The Lighthouse is a shocking beautifully designed and acted film. 

This film centres around two lighthouse guards that Quickly get on each other’s nerves and it becomes a quick descend into madness and horror 

Rated R : for sexual content, nudity, violence, disturbing images, and some language

Willem Dafoe : Dafoe is phenomenal he gives a truly chilling performance that is unlike anything I’ve seen him do in years! A few years ago he did the film the Florida Project and I thought he was great in that film and then he did at Eternity’s Gate which I never saw I heard he was amazing in it though and now he does the Lighthouse and here he blows it straight out of the water. As here he plays a character that is a middle aged, paranoid person that is driven to total and complete madness and Dafoe takes it on with ferocious force. He channels some of the best acting of his career as he fully inhabits the character fully with truly transforming into the part as when he speaks he has this old sea captain’s voice and then you take on top of that you have the psychical appearance which is a truly breathtaking transformation as he is nearly unrecognizable in the film. In the beginning he is the most out together much like Pattinson’s character and further on he goes totally off the rails as he channels such a unpredictable and terrifying aspect to his character as when he is full of anger and frustration you see it eat him up from the inside out and he’ll start low and then it’ll just escalate higher and higher until he’s screaming to his lungs capacity and it’s incredible to witness and he is inhabiting this character head on and he seems like he is under the skin of this character and truly gets inside the skin of him so authentically. He has this dark blackness behind his eyes the entire time of the film and it’s terrifying to watch as within seconds you don’t know if he’ll laugh hysterically or lash out in violence he’s so unpredictable and Dafoe is more then capable of stepping up to that task as he is showing such a full range of raw intense emotions as he spews his dialogue in such honesty you feel like he means every word and he brings such impact to what he’s saying with how he says it. Their are places emotionally and psychically Dafoe goes I’ve never seen him channel before onscreen and it’s amazing to watch as he truly consumes himself into the character and delivers what is one of his best performances ever he truly is emotionally bare in this film with such passion and commitment for the character he’s terrifying and chilling to watch but you can’t look away he’s captivating In every frame of this film. Dafoe has once again crafted another truly outstanding performance that deserves to be applauded for its brilliance. 

Robert Pattinson : Pattinson delivers another top notch performance following his outstanding recent performance in 2017 Good Time giving us a truly breathtaking performance here in the Lighthouse. Pattinson is shaping up to be quite the fine actor following his run as Edward Cullen in the Twilight franchise ever since then he really has distanced himself from playing boy toy cookie cutter characters and instead goes for the juicer and more interesting complex characters most recently and I love that he has taken a liking to the more dramatic genre as he really does soar in that genre as this film he shines bright once again. Pattinson plays a newly appointed Lighthouse guard and he slowly looses his mind as the film progresses and the decent into madness. Robert shows the range required for this type of character and For the first half he plays the character very emotionally subtle but then as the film gets into its second Half of the story he kicks it into overdrive and really expands upon his character and shows some truly fantastic emotionally well acted moments. Out of the two performances in this film Robert’s is the one that is more emotionally quiet until the middle part of the film as we really see him progress as a character over the course of the story in some very big ways and Robert is fully committed to the scene with truly stunning moments as it is like a chess match between him and Dafoe as they argue and sometimes will fight one another onscreen and both give incredible performances and Robert shows such a depth to him sure when he speaks the lines he brings a real truth to his dialogue but he also transforms his voice to truly disappear into the role as he more then Dafoe really emotes with his eyes in such a serious and incredible way as we the audience can tell so much of what he is thinking or feeling just by a glance or a look with no words required which is brilliant but he also can go from subtle to crazy within seconds and he can turn it on and off so seamlessly. He crafts a character with a mysterious background but also can show the more evil and sinister Side to him as he has this laugh that is so unsettling to her and it sounds so genuine you can see he is being swept up in every scene of this film and is pouring his blood sweat and tears into this performance. Robert Pattinson delivers a performance that is one of his best and shows once again that he can dominate the dramatic genre as he proves it here once again.

Robert Eggers : Robert gives a very impressive directed film here! He impressed the hell out of me here as he brings a very specific style to this film that I hadn’t seen before! He crafts the film to be a period piece and he molds the setting to be as authentic and true to the period it takes place in to the point that the aspect ratio of the film is how films would look in the 1930’s and he kept the colour to be in black and white which I actually think made the story more vibrant in black and white honestly as it brought this sense of unpredictability to the surface that gets under your skin. What I loved about his direction is that the film has only one setting as it dose not go anywhere it all unfolds within the single setting which is the Lighthouse. Which I think was perfect because he made you feel this sense of isolation and it felt more tense as their is only the two characters and the growing tensions which grows over the course of the film until it hits a boiling point and explodes in rages of anger both emotionally and psychically. He crafted a compelling narrative that even at times could feel confusing I give him credit for really crafting a unique psychological horror that has terrific performances and which setting is really embraced and feels like your in that time in the film it is very immersive. He engages the audience with the spectacle and the story and then draws you in further with the performances it was brilliantly directed and definitely one of the finest directed films I have seen in recent time. He gets under your bones not with jump scares but with smartly crafted and well thought scares that get in your head and send chills down your spine he has made a truly special kind of horror film here and what a brilliant job he did as well.