The Lighthouse isn't exactly scary, at least it's much better than The Shining in its genre.
But for those who have experienced that loneliness first-hand in that isolation, "The Lighthouse" is a shock to the heart. Because it is so real.
This fear stems from a real experience - the 2020 Spring Festival.
First of all, because the film is mixed with many metaphors, the whole is obscure and difficult to understand. I have to put aside (because I don't understand) these similes, metaphors and various religious symbols, and only talk about the subtle changes that people's psychology experiences in a closed world.
During the Spring Festival of 2020, due to the epidemic, a person stayed in a rental house for more than a month.
No computer, no TV, no Wi-Fi, no neighbors (all home).
The clutter and hustle and bustle that had been repugnant before suddenly became a terrifying tranquility.
The environment of the two protagonists in "The Lighthouse" is a closed island. Because one shifts during the day and the other shifts at night, the only time they can talk is at the dinner table.
My daily conversation is also limited to the few words I say to the restaurant owner when I go downstairs to buy food. Like the two protagonists in the film, these few words are all the talking volume of the day.
I talk less, but my mental activities have not decreased. I often talk to myself in my heart, not talking to myself, and the content is miscellaneous.
And the long-term loneliness, and the mental stress brought about by the constant boring life day after day, can really change a person. This subtle psychological change is not easy to detect, but it actually happened.
It started with anxiety and insomnia, and the film is mainly reflected in young people.
Frequent dreams (especially nightmares) followed by hallucinations.
The film also appears in young people: I often dream of mermaids at night; I have hallucinations and see mermaids while working in the daytime.
During that time, I was also plagued by nightmares. I always had nightmares whenever I slept, whether it was day or night. Some dreams are vague, and you forget them when you wake up, and you can't remember them no matter how much you think about them; some are clearer, and you can even recall certain details. The most profound one was written in the notebook by me, and the facial expressions of each character in the dream can be described in detail.
Later, I reversed my schedule and went to bed during the day, so that even if I was awakened by a nightmare, I could still see the light.
Including strong desires and fantasies about sex, which can be especially intense when alone. The film is reflected in both old sailors and young people.
That loneliness in loneliness doesn't just exist at night, it exists at every moment, and as long as there is a space in your mind, it will come in.
Strong curiosity about things around you.
The film mainly focuses on young people: he has always wondered what is in the lighthouse that the old sailor insists on guarding alone.
I also often wondered if there would be something on the rooftop of the apartment I rented, and imagined meeting a lonely girl like me there.
This intense curiosity grows stronger and drives you to want to find out. One day I went up to the rooftop, but there was nothing on it, everyone else went home, only a pile of sundries and a few ropes for drying clothes were left. (At the end of the film I tend to prefer that there is nothing in the lighthouse, just like my rooftop. Everything comes from intense curiosity and fantasy)
Slowly you will start to become dependent on alcohol, cigarettes, etc.
The film is reflected in both old sailors and young people. The young man did not drink at first, but after a while he began to drink like the old sailor.
I don't know how to drink alcohol, and I feel dizzy after drinking a bottle of beer. But one night after being alone for about 20 days, when I went downstairs to buy food and passed by the supermarket as usual, an idea came to my mind: "Buy a can of wine and try it?" Since I don't know how to drink, I only buy A tiny can of Budweiser. Since then, it has been out of control, and if there is no wine for dinner at night, I will always feel empty in my heart.
Smoking is also essential, and like the two protagonists in the film, these are the most common and effective ways to relieve stress.
Sometimes it becomes nerve-wracking, and the film mainly shows young people: lying on the roof peeking at the old sailor sleeping, running to the beach in the middle of the night, etc.
I sometimes think for a long time because of the simple question of "do you want to mop the floor today"...
Now that there are more and more people, and the neighbors are returning one after another, I am finally relieved.
After watching "The Lighthouse" today, I was suddenly surprised: how similar I am to the young people in the film during this period!
If you are really like this film, you are in a deserted and inhabited island, but the boat that should have come to rescue you has not appeared, the food you depend on for survival suddenly deteriorates, and the alcohol to relieve stress is exhausted. When the strong sense of loneliness strikes again, tragedy is about to happen.
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