Netflix's The Pale Blue Eye Movie Review
© Provided by CBRArriving on Netflix on January 6, The Pale Blue Eye is the latest entry in the modern mystery genre, telling the story of a particularly bitter part of American history centuries ago. Those looking for a different kind of villain behind the flashy, colorful glass onion could do a lot worse than Scott Cooper's flamboyant latest hit. It's a fine modern entry into the genre, bolstered by the cast, if hampered by a third act that can't sustain the rest of the film.
The adaptation of Louis Bayard's eponymous novel, The Pale Blue Eye , focuses primarily on Augustus Landor (Christian Bale), a lonely, cynical man who is still haunted by the absence of his daughter Mattie (Hadley Robinson). Despite her reservations, she is recruited by Captain Hitchcock (Simon McBurney) and Superintendent Thayer (Timothy Spall) to investigate a mysterious and seemingly mysterious murder on the grounds of West Point Military Academy. Still a relatively new institution, Landor is tasked with keeping the school's reputation clean by calmly solving a murder, especially after other students begin to be targeted.
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Helping him through it all is a flamboyant young cadet, Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling), who quickly proves to be Landor's important ally and friend. As the investigation continues, Poe finds himself caught up in the social life of his younger brother Artemus (Harry Lawty), his intelligent but sickly sister Leah (Lucy Boynton), and their parents, Doctor Father Daniel (Toby Jones) and their mother. Julia (Gillian Anderson) – further complicating matters as their ties to traditional crime slowly unravel over the course of the film.
Directed and written by Scott Cooper ( Crazy Heart ), Pale Blue Eye is a well-constructed mystery that dives into the goth atmosphere to good effect. The film isn't devoid of color or light, but it's deliberate with them, often using a dull, gray palette to further draw audiences into a certain mood and tone. Cinematographer Masanobu Takayanagi paints an image of 19th-century America pulled from, at best, a vintage oil painting, giving Pale Blue Eye an appropriate visual tenor that works in its favor. It's a dark film, but not devoid of wit and charm, especially when Melling fully immerses himself in the open but surprisingly innocent character of the poetic legend.
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The film doesn't take the easy part with Poe and make him dark or cartoonish, nor does it completely ignore the more complex elements of the real character. Instead, Melling gives a deceptively warm and sensitive performance, especially compared to the deliberately boring Landor. Bale delivers a strong performance in the segment, never letting the potentially darker elements overwhelm the deep well of emotion the character can usually conceal. When the two are on screen together, the film crackles and their relationship quickly provides flashes of fun and excitement in an extremely chilling environment. It elevates the film and adds a lot of warmth to the story.
While the rest of the cast doesn't quite reach that level of lived-in emotion and feeling, they all do an admirable job of solving the remaining unknown and more unpredictable mystery. What ultimately drives the deliberately paced film is the third act, which is difficult to approach without completely spoiling the ending. While there are some interesting ideas in the final twists of the story, there's a melodramatic immediacy to much of the third act that gives the film a less than enjoyable feel.
Light blue eyes benefit from a strong sense of tone and strong cue pairing; Seriously, Bale and Melling deserve more screen time together than this movie. Overall, this is a solid Gothic entry into the mystery genre. It's just a shame the movie couldn't have a finale, ending with some well-shot and acted sequences that end up feeling unnecessarily convoluted and even unnecessarily violent with mostly unseen and underdeveloped characters.
The Pale Blue Eye hits Netflix on January 6.
