THE PALE BLUE EYE (2022)

1830s West Point murder mystery (soon looking like a series of Satanic Ritual sacrifices), sees Cadet Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling), peculiar enough to be a natural suspect, drafted as sideman to visiting ‘problem solver’ Augustus Landor (Christian Bale).  Set in the dark of winter, this plush entertainment is somber, serious and painfully stupid.  In tone & story development, it’s something between literary thrillers like THE ALIENIST/’18 or THE NAME OF THE ROSE/’86*, but shows little of their cleverness, sense or sensibility in the main crime before tossing in a ‘Got’cha’ twist epilogue that makes mincemeat of the story.  Turns out our ultimate villain just happened to stumble onto the perfect conspiracy to cover his tracks.  (An alibi of opportunity?)  The whole thing not only ludicrous, but positively distasteful; which is saying something these days!  With whispered vocals so you can’t HEAR clues; candlelit interiors so you can’t SEE them*; and Method Acting to show everyone was neurasthenic with iron poor blood in those days.  And to think, Poe's Tales of Ratiocination pretty much started the detective genre.  Writer/director Scott Cooper could have used that guy.

WATCH THIS, NOT THAT/LINK:  *While THE NAME OF THE ROSE received nothing like the staggering international reception of Umberto Eco’s novel, it looks considerably better now then it did in 1986.    https://maksquibs.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-name-of-rose-1986.html

ATTENTION MUST BE PAID:  Amusingly (and it's the only amusing thing in here), the cast is so ultra-U.K., you’ll wonder which side of the Revolution they’d have fought for.  (Also amusing to imagine how much this 70+ million dollar film would have lost if released theatrically.  Ah, there’s the real mystery, how NetFlix balances the books on all these DOA streamers.)

SCREWY THOUGHT OF THE DAY:  *Sans ‘fill light,’ which the human eye naturally adjusts for but camera lenses don’t, we’re literally left in the dark.  Stanley Kubrick’s BARRY LYNDON/’75 has a lot to answer for on this misguided technique.  Try it out yourself.  Turn off the lights, light a candle or two in a room, then note just how much is visible.  Surprising, no?