The Lighthouse (2019)

The Lighthouse stars Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson as two lighthouse keepers stationed on a remote New England island in the 1890s. The two-hander cast delivers intense, theatrical performances, with Dafoe playing the veteran keeper Thomas Wake and Pattinson as his subordinate Ephraim Winslow, whose psychological deterioration drives the film's narrative.

The Lighthouse was shot in black-and-white on 35mm film using a 1.19:1 aspect ratio, a nearly square format used in early cinema during the late 1920s and early 1930s. Director Robert Eggers and cinematographer Jarin Blaschke chose this format to evoke the aesthetic of early sound films and to create a claustrophobic, period-authentic visual atmosphere.

The Lighthouse draws inspiration from the real-life Smalls Lighthouse incident of 1801 in Wales, in which two keepers became trapped on a remote island during a storm with tragic results. Director Robert Eggers and his brother Max Eggers, who co-wrote the screenplay, incorporated elements of this historical event along with influences from Herman Melville, Sarah Orne Jewett, and maritime folklore.

Cinematographer Jarin Blaschke received an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography for his work on The Lighthouse, recognizing the film's distinctive black-and-white, 1.19:1 format visuals. The 2019 film was widely praised by critics for its technical craftsmanship and the performances of Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, though it remained a niche arthouse release rather than a mainstream commercial success.