Two men are dropped off on a rock in the middle of the ocean, left alone to tend the lighthouse. The men, let’s call them Wick and Winslow, though they mostly go by “Sir” and “lad”, are strangers about to get extremely cozy during the four weeks of their isolation.
Winslow (Robert Pattinson) is a young guy, a bit of a drifter, here to make some serious money and go home. Wick (Willem Dafoe) is gruff yet poetic, exacting yet frustrated by Winslow’s rule-abiding nature. The two rub each other wrong right from the start, and the thing about having absolutely nothing but each other’s company is that you’ll either become best friends or the worst of enemies.
The weeks pass slowly, marked by back-breaking work. There’s wanking and drinking and farting, but eventually their time is up. They’ve made it! Except that’s really just where the story starts.
A storm blows in, which means no boat can come for them. They’ve been stranded, but for how long? Days? Weeks? Time becomes meaningless, reality blurred. We’re witnessing a descent into madness, but the question is: whose? Winslow’s? Wick’s? Our own?
Shot in stark black and white, with an aching cinematography and an arresting sound design, Robert Eggers (director of the Witch) returns with a dizzying, disorienting film about madness.
The candlelight serves perfectly to illuminate Dafoe’s lined face, his fevered eyes leaving us to wonder whether he’s a psychopath or just a drunk. Dafoe and Pattinson spar thrillingly on screen, each pushed by the other to unravel even further. It’s magnetic even if it’s not always easy to watch.
The Lighthouse is full of omens and mythic imagery awaiting decoding. This film doesn’t have the same sense of unending, unbearable dread that the Witch did, but it will surprise and confound you in new and unique ways, daring you to look away.
ASSHOLES WATCHING MOVIES 
The Witch was amazing. I can’t wait for The Lighthouse. It sounds fascinating.
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Fascinating, deeply disturbing, incredibly odd. Right up your alley 😉
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Very excited for this one so glad to know it works!
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Wow, you guys are brave!
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It is demanding. As an audience member, you need to bring your A-game. Not for noobs.
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Sounds intriguing!
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Hmm … possibilities. 🙂
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I’m looking forward to this, My only fear is that it gets a bit Lars Von Trier-y.
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I really love both actors – will see it!
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We really have to thank Twilight for this (and a lot of other movies). I’m not saying I like them shiny vampire movies.
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Pingback: The Lighthouse: Movie Review
I actually preferred it to The Witch! It was an incredible experience in the cinema, with the fog horn accompanying the whole movie, the great soundtrack, the amazing images… I can’t wait to rewatch it!
I’ve put a link to your interesting review below the one I wrote on my blog, I hope you don’t mind! :–)
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