The modern era of streaming has given us so much choice, so many good films and television from all around the world. There isn’t a minute of the day when we can’t watch practically anything that we want, if it’s not on a streaming service it can be bought to watch digitally over the Internet.
Though this is brilliant for me there is a downside, too much choice, way too much choice. I’m crippled by analysis paralysis, skipping through all the services and not stopping on anything as the next choice may be better!
That’s one reason that I’ve started this blog, to give me a bit of a focus and to try and encourage me to make that choice.
One of the things I’ve done to help that is to make LISTS, I like lists, it also means I can use a random number generator to choose a film from the list and just go and watch that.
I’m also going to be running polls on Twitter and eventually on Patreon for people to vote on to help me decide as well, I always like getting recommends or even just people’s views on the four films I’ll put up for voting on.
Another app I’m going to use to try and relieve the pressure of choice is Reelgood which has a randomiser at the bottom of the main page throwing up a random choice based on the services you’ve entered.
Hopefully these methods should encourage me to watch more TV and film and will mean I have more to write about.
This is the first of the reviews that I’m going to be putting out there, learning how to write about film (and writing words down in general). I’ve always been a huge film/TV fan and never really felt I was allowed to have an opinion, but you know what? I do and I’m going to be sharing it through regular posts on this blog.
The format of the review may change as I go along and gain more confidence and skill in writing but I thought if I don’t get one out now I never will.
You can always follow me over on Twitter as well for live watch throughs of TV series as and when I do them and various ramblings about whatever seems to take my fancy.
The Lighthouse
Shot in (almost) square format which gave an old-fashioned feel to the film, though the black and white was crisp and had none of the greyness associated with older films. The deep black tones of the film matched the deep tones of the constant fog horn setting a mood that got darker and darker as the film progressed.
“The light is mine”
The darkness is so oppressive that the counterpoint and beat of the lighthouse light felt alive, a heartbeat, a seductive creature in itself, maybe the real inhabitant of the island.
Both Patterson and Dafoe portray their characters brilliantly, this is emphasised with stunning direction and camera work, every frame is redolent with depth and meaning, with the solitude being carefully crafted and counterbalanced with foreboding and foreshadowing.
There is a definite Lovecraftian feel to the oppression, the sea, and madness. This tone then ups a gear a third of the way into the film changing from a pure portrait of solitude to something else as the wind changes.
Touching on a lot of different themes this is a great, though harrowing, watch with stunning performances from both actors and I’m sure it will improve from multiple watchings.
A well-crafted portrayal of a bleak existence and descent into alcohol-fuelled madness where myth and reality blend into one wind-swept and rain-lashed nightmare.
The Lighthouse
Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Mystery | November 1, 2019 (United States)
7.5
Director:Robert EggersWriter:Robert Eggers, Max EggersStars:Robert Pattinson, Willem Dafoe, Valeriia KaramanSummary: As the wavering cry of the foghorn fills the air, the taciturn former lumberjack, Ephraim Winslow, and the grizzled lighthouse keeper, Thomas Wake, set foot in a secluded and perpetually grey islet off the coast of late-19th-century New England. For the following four weeks of back-breaking work and unfavourable conditions, the tight-lipped men will have no one else for company except for each other, forced to endure irritating idiosyncrasies, bottled-up resentment, and burgeoning hatred. Then, amid bad omens, a furious and unending squall maroons the pale beacon's keepers in the already inhospitable volcanic rock, paving the way for a prolonged period of feral hunger; excruciating agony; manic isolation, and horrible booze-addled visions. Now, the eerie stranglehold of insanity tightens. Is there an escape from the wall-less prison of the mind? —Nick Riganas
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