So, again for the one time, A24 has yet to take an “L” in my book. They…are…K I L L I N G it.
Aspect ratio, editing, cinematography, direction, and score—these are the elements of note for this film and they are spectacularly applied. Dafoe is an acting god amongst mortals. Accents, specifically a super on-the-nose 19th century New England style of speak, drove this feature.
The use of lighting in this film could be a college course worth registering for. I wonder about the filtering process, the lenses used, and how they played with depth using a 1.19 : 1 aspect ratio. The sharpness! Sheesh! I could see every strand in Dafoe’s beard and every cut in Pattinson’s abdominal region. ‘Twas immaculate, bruh-bruh (the sharpness and the abs). The choice to shoot in mono sound was a clear ode to the Golden Era’s black and whites, and was specific and probably necessary given the scope and style of the feature.
“The Lighthouse” is second film I’ve seen this year where Robert Pattinson has had to navigate a screenplay about tortured isolationism (the other being “High Life”). Films about cabin fever or increasingly claustrophobic spaces really make me think about mass incarceration in this country, and what that shit does to your mental capacity. I appreciated the imagery of the hallucinations Pattinson’s character experienced. The fantasy based on an artifact was inadvertently comedic and for some reason I empathized with his sexual fixation. Shawty was trying to release, man. I get it.
I wonder how much of the film was shot word-for-word, action-by-action to the screenplay. This is the director’s (Robert Eggers) debut, so I’m interested in process here. Were there moments of indescribable cinematic magic that were totally accidental, but worked on screen? I wonder what the editing process was like with this, given the lighting challenges. How long did it take for Dafoe and Pattinson to nail down their thick New England accents? There are so many good things emanating from this piece.
Robert Pattinson continues to show that he is not JUST the shawty from the “Twilight’ film series. He’ll be one of those actors who’ll stick around for a while, much like his co-star Willem Dafoe. They were both awesome in their roles. I think Dafoe may have shined a bit brighter here.
Lost a few cool points on the conclusion. Felt a bit incomplete in the end, but still was a solid piece of art! I’d recommend the gander.