Why must I go to the cinema to watch "The Lighthouse"?
The answer is simple:
Many small gods films,
If you don't watch it, it's gone.
This sentence also comes from the father's words about his daughter Gonger in the movie "The Great Master". The father's evaluation of his daughter is: she will be obsessed. So Xiao Xuan'er is here, and he will give this pertinent advice to all audiences who are fascinated by "good movies."
The resources still have subtitles that are not good enough, and the grayscale of the picture is serious. It is rare that there are movie theaters showing in North America. At present, only Imagine cinema is still showing in Toronto. Don't miss this opportunity.
Let’s talk about the wonderful features of this movie. Except for the two male gods torn each other, why this movie should and needs to be seen in the cinema.
The director uses modern film shooting techniques to restore the film's appearance 100 years ago!
Seeing William Dafoe look like this, plus a little slow effect with insufficient number of frames and flashing light, do you feel like watching a silent film? !
With the strong debut of "The Witch" in Sundance director Robert Eggers, and his screenwriter brother Max Eggers' second feature film, not only A24 investment, but also invited William Dafoe and Robert Pa Ding Sen helped out. They also proposed a crazy idea of using white and black film to shoot a movie with the most basic techniques to scare modern audiences! The staring effect of Robert Pattinson here is also a common way to scare people with white eyes in movies 100 years ago!
There is also this scene in a similar part of the film. In short, it looks very cute and scary. However, when the big screen suddenly jumps and cuts here, the audience will still be physically stimulated.
I believe that now that everyone is allowed to watch silent movies, it is definitely not going to be watched because it is too boring. Therefore, director Robert Eggers used the silent filming technique while retaining the sound effects and dialogue between characters for modern audiences, that is, the effect of a black and white movie with sound. Thanks to the director for leaving a way for us in Hyundai! Moreover, the sound effects of the film have also achieved the environmental sound synchronization with the inner voice of the characters. Whether it is the sound of the horn of the ship, the sound of the horn, or the sound of the waves, the emotions of the characters are externalized through the sound, so that the audience can also listen to the inner voices of the characters.
The director who shot the second feature film: Robert Eggers, in this way, regards the film as art and pushes himself to a desperate situation. This idea sounds simple, but it is not easy to implement. In addition to manpower and financial resources, it also requires shooting skills and a spirit of exploration. The director allowed himself to use a limited form to show the unique charm of the movie to the modern audience! He let us see the movie technique 100 years ago, put it now, and it still works!
This scene was taken out alone, and Dafoe's naked posture confirmed that it was a bit ridiculous, but this is also a bridge segment specially arranged for the film's pursuit of the reproduction of famous paintings a hundred years ago. This is also the early stage of film art, which is limited by the characteristics of painting, literature and drama. Today, film art has gradually divorced from these early art forms and has its own image art dimension. As for whether this segment is a dream or an illusion, or the entire movie is an illusion, it depends on how the audience interprets it. The director did not give a standard answer! Just like at the end of "The Witch", no one is given who is possessed by the devil. When the film director originally set it up, he didn't say that he must make up a myth of Cthulhu, but deliberately extended the multi-layered interpretation of the story.
Since "Lighthouse" tells a true folk story 100 years ago, the director forced the audience to open and watch the story in the same way as 100 years ago!
Director Robert Eggs clearly stated that he wanted to show off his skills and showed his strength! Seeing the audience dumbfounded and the critics drunk, his goal was achieved!
Minimalist plays have established multiple narratives.
The poster of the film is the story itself, the story of two men and a lighthouse. In such a minimalist story frame, the director puts a discussion on the authenticity of the story and the complexity of the characters' hearts. Was it because one person had a split personality on the island and killed himself, or was it because two people were fighting for the lighthouse and one of them was killed? Is the reason for the killing caused by schizophrenia, or is it caused by human nature and desire?
The film is interspersed with multiple dreams and animal meanings. In the multi-layer narrative, the relationship between the Greek mythical sea king and the fire-stealing Prometheus is also given. Let this small island of real scenes instantly turn into an illusory mythical realm.
The simplest folklore can also carry the most confusing truth. Because of the complexity of human nature, the agnosticism of the truth becomes the biggest suspense and horror of the whole film.
The square composition uses the most basic audio-visual language of the movie to create an atmosphere of horror.
The two characters seem to arrive at the island together, but they are never equal. The confrontation and power conversion of characters have always been the origin of drama tension.
The contradictions, antagonistic relationships and imbalances between the characters are gradually revealed in the relationship between the characters in the picture. The madness of the characters and the imbalance of the picture, the director constantly adjusts the angle and way of the audience's viewing.
The movie is full of basic image shooting techniques, and the suspense is all revealed in the details. The feeling of watching a movie can be described as the more you see, the more fear you are in your heart.
Partial close-ups of characters, animals, and scenery allow the audience to perceive the charm of image sketches
The movie itself can be independent of painting and literature, and even drama, because of the unique charm of images. Just close-up shots and lighting the characters from different angles can give the audience different perceptions and interpretations.
People in "The Lighthouse" are illuminated like sculptures, everywhere. The director tried to use black and white light and shadow to sculpt characters and time.
From the first work "The Witch", the director began to use animals to give various horror meanings and representatives. The blind seagulls in "The Lighthouse" are even more impressive. This is also the irreplaceable multiple intentions in the video narrative.
Ever since the young sailor first spotted the wood carving of a mermaid on his bed, he has been dreaming about mermaids.
The director uses chaotic dreams and disorderly editing,
Continuously affect the mood and psychology of the audience watching.
From curiosity to being frightened, it's just a moment.
Think about the director's useless special effects,
But it constantly creates psychological or physical discomfort for the audience.
Use montages and symbolic totems
Arouse the most primitive imagination of the audience
These single pictures are originally meaningless and not scary, but they have life and symbolic intention in the movie. The mystery depends on the imagination of the audience.
This movie has allowed modern audiences to experience the feeling of crossing, and at the same time, they were deeply shocked by the charm of black and white movies. A final reminder, the film's sexual suggestion and filthy images are so heavy that it can't be added. Perhaps it is because the environment is full of filth and filth that makes the characters even more desperately pursuing the light of the lighthouse.
In the end, just because there are not many good movies like this, with the crazy shooting ideas and super high degree of completion of the original creator, it is worth you to go into the cinema to watch. In addition to experienced fans, it is especially recommended to people who are trying to create movies and students who are studying movies. This work strives to bring to the audience the charm of the film when it was born a hundred years ago, let us go to the cinema to watch this "Lighthouse" like the audience a hundred years ago.
In the end, people say that three mirrors look at the director. Here I will show three very exciting opening shots of "Lighthouse".
1. In the part of the ship, the sound of breaking through the waves overlaps with the main melody of the movie's soul. Very emotional and powerful. The so-called making images into music, the director did it with meticulous editing in a scene.
2. The boat on which the two protagonists are headed towards the island where the lighthouse is located. The two characters are imaginary in the foreground, allowing the audience to take the initiative to pay attention to the lighthouse in the middle of the silhouette of the characters. This kind of composition is simple and effective, and at the same time allows the audience to actively pay attention to the dynamic elements in the image.
3. Three consecutive shots, the characters come to the island. The characters have not been featured in close-ups, only the relationship between the characters has been explained, and the old sailor has always been in the front.
4. Finally, before the two entered the lighthouse, they gave a close-up close-up. The young Thomas seemed to be standing in front of the camera, close to the audience, but he was still standing behind the old sailor. A few seconds later, the old sailor was the first to leave and enter the house. The young sailor still looked at the audience, his eyes hesitated, and left sideways. Didn’t tell the audience why they were looking at the camera and breaking the fourth wall? A hundred years ago, there seemed to be no such concept.
5. In fact, it is not. In the next scene, the director explained that they were looking at the distant ship, that is, saying goodbye to their past. And it's possible that the ship will never come to pick them up again. This is a good way to explain the characters, and it also conforms to the inner logic of the characters in the real scene. The director's thoughts are spent in these details.
Just wait for everyone to find out more!
Xiao Xuan'er at the beginning of 2020
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