[Film Review] The Lighthouse (2019)
The Lighthouse is Robert Eggers’ second feature film, and it’s an interesting one. The Lighthouse was released in 2019 following the success of Eggers’ The Witch. I believe Egger had found his niche with this film, as his vision and style for horror films are very unique. While the story for The Lighthouse is very interesting and keeps you guessing, the cinematography and score steal the show for me.
The Lighthouse follows lighthouse keepers Thomas Wake (Willem Dafoe) and Thomas Winslow (Robert Pattinson) as they are put to work caring for a lighthouse in the late 1890’s. The film starts pretty easily as Wake and Winslow are essentially getting to know each other. Wake makes it known early that only he is allowed to stay atop the lighthouse because Winslow isn’t ready, but it’s pretty clear that something isn’t right. Things start to go south as both men quickly become obsessed with tending to the light at the top. Betrayal is a big theme in this film, as both men begin to hallucinate and have horrible visions.
I think the story being told is interesting enough to keep you invested, but I feel it relies heavily on shock value. There’s a certain scene in the film that leaves you thinking, “What did I just watch?” If you know, you know. The film’s pacing was excellent as it gave you plenty of time to assess the characters and the environment in which they are stuck. I love that the film gets things going quickly because watching two people do chores around a lighthouse would just be boring. While the film’s bread and butter is its suspense, there are a few moments that create some good laughs. This is definitely a story where you need to pay complete attention because even missing a second is going to have you more confused than you already are.
Mark Korven was behind the beautiful score and did a fantastic job. His score complemented the film’s visual aesthetic incredibly well. His score played a crucial role in creating the film’s uneasy and intense atmosphere.
Jarin Blaschke‘s cinematography was hands down my favorite part of this film. Shooting with a 1.19:1 aspect ratio was an insane decision, but ultimately paid off because it really gave the film that isolated feeling. The Orthochromatic look that Blaschke went after was amazing. In doing this, he really emphasized textures and helped give Pattinson and Dafoe that really rough look. His lighting and composition techniques are second to none. It’s no surprise that Blaschke’s work on the film led to an Oscar nomination.
Overall, I personally love this film and would recommend it to anyone who loves a suspenseful story and amazing cinematography. As much as I love this film, I must say that it has a definite target audience. I think you really have to understand Robert Eggers’ style of filmmaking and storytelling to really appreciate this one. Just as a warning, there are a couple of very explicit scenes.
Plot: 7.5
Pacing: 8
Cinematography: 10
Score: 9
Review Score: 8.6/10
The Lighthouse is currently streaming on HBO Max, or if you’re into collecting and owning physical media, you can buy a Blu-ray copy on Amazon.
