The subject of isolation, horror and insanity is a hard thing to balance, but The Lighthouse manages to balance all of this in a brilliant way. There have been a few contenders of my movie of the year but this one might be the strongest of them!
The Lighthouse takes place on an island in New England in the 1890s. We follow two lighthouse keepers and see just how isolation affects their minds. It has one of my favorite actors Willem Dafoe in it and he is joined by the brilliant Robert Pattinson. Their dynamic relationship on screen makes the movie all the more believable.
I am not going to go into the plot since it’s a must see it to believe it kind of plot. But what I can talk about is the art direction, and oh boy is this artsy. It’s not the fancy pants kind of artsy but the black & white noir kind of artsy. It doesn’t feel fluffed and the way the story is told is just done with such a manner of fine tuning it’s incredible.
At first glance this movie might feel pretentious and like an art school project. At first I thought so too. The first few minutes feels like it’s trying too hard. Then the interactions start and I forget all about it. It’s engrossing and the movie balances some humor with morbid psychological traumas. Unlike IT Chapter 2 that went full on humor and lacked any substance.
Just like Joker, The Lighthouse managed to leave me with a feeling of uneasiness. It’s a movie that shakes you to the core and it makes me glad that lighthouse keeper is a title that’s been dead for a long time. This is a strong contender for my movie of the year and I thouroghly recommend you to watch this movie!
This review was made possible thanks to our collaborative partner Spegeln.
