I watched about a quarter of “The Lighthouse” in 2020 but turned it off due to boredom.

I revisited it in 2023 with maturity and more patience. The movie still did not hold up.

Two lighthouse keepers, Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, try to keep their sanity while staying in a lighthouse in New England in the 1890’s.

I constantly checked how much time was left in the film in eagerness for the film to be over with.

There was nothing appealing about this movie, and I do not think that I could recommend this to anyone.

There is nothing interesting that happened, which is why it was so hard to keep focus on it.

I referenced mashable.com’s article about the film to try and understand more of what happened but was still pretty confused.

Today’s films are typically not shot in black and white, and movies that are in black and white have a negative connotation about them being boring or slow. This film fit directly into the stereotype.

The battles between Dafoe and Pattinson’s characters may have been the most interest part of the film, even though it did get pretty annoying and repetitive after a short period of time.

Their accents did fit the time period, I assume, and Dafoe was a good casting choice.

Pattinson was an odd one. I’m not sure who else could have played that character, but he did not come to mind.

There is not much to say about this film. It was set in one location, adding onto its bland plot.

It got somewhat interesting towards the end of the film when Pattinson’s character started really showing signs of going insane.

There were some good camera shots, such as when Ephraim, Pattinson’s character, finally makes it up to the lighthouse, with the blood and the bright light shining on his face allowed for a great shot.

I also read that the actual lighthouse is a symbol of “power and control” and the light symbolized “knowledge and the ability to guide others.”

From a surface level standpoint, there is nothing good about this movie. To grab something from the film, research has to be done, and there is so little given from the movie that you don’t even know where to start.

It also has an uncommon aspect ratio as well which adds a creepy feel to it.

There is not a lot to speak about because there was not a lot that happened.

Overall, I just know I would not recommend it nor will I watch this again.

Rate: 0.5/5

Cam’ron Hardy can be reached at 581-2812 or at cahardy@eiu.edu.