Review: The Lighthouse

Image courtesy of A24.

With just two films, director Robert Eggers has introduced his own brand of Gothic horror involving tales of America's past. His debut, the eerie 2015 folkloric horror chronicle "The Witch," was set in colonial New England, while his latest, the gloomy and broody "The Lighthouse," is set in a remote locale in the late 1800s.

His latest picture is a visually stunning tale of madness in which two men - a crusty old lighthouse keeper named Thomas Wake (Willem Dafoe) and a younger man known as Ephraim (Robert Pattinson) - arrive to keep watch of the titular structure for a period of several weeks.

From the start, their relationship is rocky. Thomas has no qualms about bossing Ephraim around, calling him diminutive terms such as "lad" or "dog" when barking out his orders - which include that his young protege get drunk with him and listen to his long-winded tales. Ephraim must also suffer through Thomas' seemingly never-ending farts, although Ephraim himself is occasionally devoted bodily function - namely, an already much-talked-about - and rather delirious - masturbation scene.

Although I wouldn't dare give it away, the secret to "The Lighthouse" lies within a famous Greek myth, which is somewhat referenced throughout the film, but is made abundantly clear in its mysterious final shot. Also, Ephraim becomes obsessed with a seagull at the lighthouse, and when he goes against Thomas's command to leave the birds alone - the older man claims that harming the birds will bring bad luck - a brutally comedic scene halfway through the picture hints at the characters' fates.

Although there is tension between the two characters throughout the film, it increases once Ephraim witnesses an odd event through the cracks of the lighthouse's floor. He becomes obsessed with what he believes to be going on in the lighthouse and is increasingly jealous that Thomas has claimed the top of the structure for himself. Ephraim's eerie and erotic dreams involving mermaids can be read as another bad sign as the mythological creatures are known for summoning sailors to their dooms.

"The Witch" opened to much acclaim several years ago, and while I had great respect for that film's authenticity and found it to be creepy - especially that goat - I didn't quite love it as much as some others did. I believe "The Lighthouse" to be a fairly large step up as a sophomore feature. It's visually stunning and Eggers uses the locale as well as lighting, editing and its claustrophobic 4:3 ratio to great effect.

It also helps that the film's two lead performances are strong. While Dafoe is obviously being encouraged to ham it up a little as the mad Thomas, Ephraim's descent into insanity takes a fair amount of heavy lifting on Pattinson's part - and he manages to nail the role. Both actors rise to the challenge in what appear to be physically demanding roles.

Whether you completely understand "The Lighthouse" might depend on your knowledge of Greek mythology, and whether you enjoy it might depend on your capacity to stomach grim, surreal arthouse horror cinema. But there's no question that this is a film exhibiting a decent amount of vision, and it's further proof that Eggers is one of the more exciting new voices in horror.