“Doldrums. Doldrums. Eviler than the Devil. Boredom makes men to villains…”
Thomas Wake (Willem Dafoe); The Lighthouse (2019 dir. Robert Eggers)
We’re having a little 61 Days of Horror horror movie marathon at the house. I’ve worked to curate a list of films and group them together in some sort sensible fashion. Prior to last night’s film we watched the Universal Classic The Creature from the Black Lagoon. I decided a nice tie-in to that film—which would also thread us toward a series of witch films—would be Robbert Eggers’ The Lighthouse.
This was my second viewing of the film. Typically any first viewing is purely for enjoyment’s sake. The Lighthouse is one of those films that sort of takes up residence with you. Sets up in the grey matter and makes itself at home. This second viewing, I sat dumfounded as the ending credits burned across the screen.
I’m not going to review the film. I will encourage you to watch it. But, considering the fact that we’re still in a bit of a quarantine state, I wanted to explore the themes of the film. Primarily that of isolation and madness.
Humans are a social creature. We’re meant to gather and interact. To celebrate, as well as test, each other. Throughout time, it’s primarily those pushed to the fringes of a society that snap. Our relationship with community has been under attack for years, decades even. A people divided is much weaker than a people united. One thing is certain about the 2020 Pandemic, it has foisted isolation upon all of us.
Sadly, most folk are prepared for sitting alone with their thoughts.
As you watch The Lighthoues, you see how isolation works. How it comes on slow like and makes itself a friend; peppers you with little kisses. How those kisses transition to suckling, and how before you even realize it, it’s plum gnawing away at your sanity. The person you were, the ideologies and convictions you held, hell, even your hygiene and personal aesthetics are changed to the point of being unrecognizable.
The Lighthouse masterfully explores this theme. I’m reminded of Roman Polanski’s Repulsion. It’s far easier to observe the machinations of isolation in something like a 100 minutes long film. It’s far more difficult to observe them in the day-to-day. And in this day and age—especially during a pandemic-induced quarantine—vigilance of self and sanity should be priority number one.
One must strive to gain sentry over one’s self. Certainly a sound practice against isolation madness is not allowing for ourselves to fall into personal echo chambers or poisonous group-thought. Another is a bit more of a life journey. One of coming to appreciate stillness; quiet, alone. Strengthening the mind against itself.