7.9 | / 10 |
Users | 4.5 | |
Reviewer | 4.5 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Robert Pattinson, Valeriia KaramanDrama | 100% |
Horror | 94% |
Fantasy | Insignificant |
Video codec: HEVC / H.265
Video resolution: 4K (2160p)
Aspect ratio: 1.20:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.2:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
4K Ultra HD
Region free
Movie | 4.5 | |
Video | 0.0 | |
Audio | 4.5 | |
Extras | 5.0 | |
Overall | 4.5 |
For such a curious film that has "cult item" virtually emblazoned across its misty black and white imagery, The Lighthouse has already
had a somewhat surprising three releases in Region A (two 1080, one 4K UHD). Parts of my Region A reviews are reprinted here, as appropriate.
Thunder Rock really should have been one of the biggest hits of the 1939-40 Broadway season. It was a production of the
legendary Group Theater, then coming off the single biggest smash hit in its entire history, and it in fact reunited Frances Farmer and Luther Adler,
the stars of that very sensation, Clifford Odets’ 1937 play Golden Boy
(note that
the link points
to the movie
version). The redoubtable Elia Kazan, then still relatively early in his career (he had actually replaced Adler as part of the touring company of
Golden Boy), directed the cast (which also included a number of other Group
notables like Lee J. Cobb and Morris Carnovsky), and the script was by the noted author and anthropologist (!) Robert Ardrey. Thunder
Rock, which previewed under the title Tower of Light, told the story of two lighthouse keepers (or at least one lighthouse keeper and
a supplier of goods to that lighthouse), one of whom is increasingly isolationist
and prone to “dreaming” (if not outright hallucinating), and the other, who leaves to embark on a quest to better the world. Thunder Rock
opened in November 1939, in the wake of the first battles of what would ultimately become World War II, and its message that involvement in
conflict is
sometimes necessary in order to end conflict was not well received by an American audience which was itself still pretty resolutely
isolationist, as it continued to be by and large until Pearl Harbor was attacked around two years later. Thunder Rock may have failed on
“this side of the pond”, closing after only about three weeks, but it was a substantial, even legendary, hit in London, becoming a stage symbol of
British resistance. Some fans may know Thunder Rock became a somewhat ill regarded British film in 1942 starring Michael Redgrave
which made some substantial changes to the original play while perhaps understandably highlighting Ardrey’s thesis that a sanguine reaction to
fascism would only spell disaster. Now some 81 years after Robert Ardrey crafted a piece which (in its stage version, anyway) took place in a
lighthouse populated by apparitions and with a plot that evoked both a literal and figurative “storm warning”, another Robert, Robert Eggers, arrives
with The Lighthouse, a kind of nightmarish “two hander” which is similarly located, and which offers a spooky mood and some outstanding
performances, but a “message”
that may seem somewhat muddled.
Note: Screenshots are sourced from Arrow's standalone 1080 release. This package does not include a 1080 disc.
The Lighthouse is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Arrow Video with an HVEC / H. 265 encoded 2160p transfer in 1:20:1. While A24's own
4K release was notably silent on technical information, aside from a generic "new HDR master" on their website, Arrow doesn't provide much
more information on their version, with just the following generic verbiage included in their insert booklet:
The Lighthouse is presented in 1.19:1 [sic] with 5.1 sound. The 4K UHD release of the film is presented in 4K resolution with HDR10 and Dolby Vision.I frankly noticed little if any difference between this 4K UHD release and the one from A24, and will therefore repeat some of my comments from my original 4K review here. I've been on record as sometimes having an almost Pavlovian (negative) response to shot on film properties in the increased resolution this format offers, and for that as reason as well as the film's ubiquitously dark, shrouded cinematography made me as curious as I've ever been to view a film in 4K UHD. Yes, grain is very thick at times, to the point it can mask the already gray, dreary skies in outdoor scenes in particular, but it's generally rather nicely resolved in my estimation, and is part of what gives this very uniquely shot film some of its texture and ambience. HDR and/or Dolby Vision probably offer more in the shadow definition department than in actual highlights, something that can help bring out at least general detail levels in some of the rather dark interior scenes. Contrast is lustrous throughout this presentation, offering gorgeous blacks and a very nicely modulated gray scale. The 4K UHD presentation perhaps points up some slight focus pulling issues at times and I was kind of surprised to see just a nanosecond or two of very minor frame damage that I hadn't noticed before. The supposedly low light scenes featuring the two focal characters and the tabletop lamp have an almost (appropriately?) watery look in this version, with the light almost looking effulgent. That said, I didn't notice any hint of banding in situations like this.
The 4K UHD master data files were sourced from NBC Universal.
The Lighthouse offers a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that derives considerable surround activity from the glut of ambient environmental effects that are a pretty ubiquitous part of the sound design. Everything from screeching seagulls to the crash of waves echo through the side and rear channels with nice authenticity. The weird thing about this film is it almost plays like a silent a lot of the time, with long stretches going by without much if any dialogue, leaving the soundtrack to be populated with nothing other than ambient environmental effects. That said, dialogue (which is fairly heavy accented with dialect work on the part of both actors) is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout (there are subtitles to help with understanding some of the colloquialisms being utilized). Mark Korven's kind of minimalist score also sounds evocative and full bodied throughout.
I'd be rather hard pressed to sum up what The Lighthouse "means", but it's one of those films that has indelible impact perhaps due to the very fact that it's often inscrutable. Dafoe and Pattinson are both pretty amazing here (and I'm one who has never really cottoned to Pattinson's acting for some reason), and the entire film is awash (sorry again) in an absolutely palpable mood. This 4K UHD version offers secure technical merits, and both the on disc supplements and Arrow's typically nicely designed package and swag are excellent. Highly recommended.
2019
Special Edition
2019
Limited Edition
2019
First Edition #3
2019
2019
2019
Director's Cut
2019
2009
Indicator Series
1936
Dokhtari dar šab tanhâ be xâne miravad / دختری در شب تنها به خانه میرود | Includes Limited Edition Graphic Novel
2014
1980
2021
Arrow Academy
1972
The Night the Screaming Stops / Opętanie
1981
The Full Uncensored Version
2018
2018
2004
55th Anniversary
1968
1941
2020
+ Drácula
1931
Special Edition
1993
1977
Indicator Series
1961
Indicator Series
1934
Indicator Series
1939