Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper

Shipwrecked on a deserted island, a confused young man finds himself stranded with a reclusive lighthouse keeper who continually dissuades and mocks his belief in a series of visions regarding ghostly figures on the island and tries to ensure that he can leave the island alive.

This here was a decent if uninspiring effort. Among the few positives here is the rather intriguing mystery built up around the island and its ghostly past which runs pretty much throughout the movie. Although it starts off small with the claims of his visions around the area which are immediately laughed off because of his amnesiac condition, it soon turns into a much more ominous tale with the discovery of the woman living in the surrounding woods or the scenes back at the house featuring the shifty behavior running into the lighthouse at night. Despite being initially laughed off as hallucinations, the numerous sightings he has of her around the lighthouse where she keeps on giving him hints of terrible outcomes by falling into the sea or having visions of her wandering through the wilderness gives this a solid enough outing as there's a lot of work done to offer the idea that something is happening on the lighthouse. This gives way into full-blown encounters with the spirits around the area as his carnal experience near the cave that turns into a ghost-swarm holding him down to let her have her way with him, the fantastic discovery of the caves underground or the scene of the zombified sailors coming out to attack him which give this a nice bit of action as well. The rousing finale, where the zombie-like ghosts are finally in action and generate a little bit of activity with the march on the lighthouse and their eventual battle together which is fun with all the sides getting in on everything together which really ends this on a high note. There are a few flaws with this one. One of the main issues to be found here is the film's utterly bland and boring pace, which just drains the life out of the movie with plenty of dragged out moments throughout here. The first half in the lighthouse has absolutely nothing happening here and it all just gives such a state of extended boredom throughout here that the film really struggles to get going during this crucial part of the film. It's also not helped out by the fact that this all features some really bland and dull feeling that covers the interchanges between them as the film's rather low- budget makes these all the more obvious. That, in essence, is the biggest problem with this one as the rather ambitious story doesn't fit the type of presentation here with the cramped, closed-off setting doesn't fit that well with the type of story it goes for here, and manages to just hammer away that the film is too small budgeted to try this since the low quantity of action makes for a dull time overall. There are a few places it can go to and they look quite bad as a result, and it all just screams so low budget that there's little chance of this one offering up much to change that kind of feeling here. It's the biggest crutch against this and is the one main factor to get over in this one.

Rated R: Violence, Language, Brief Nudity and a clothed sex scene.

Love Edgar Allan Poe, from reading his timeless stories and the Roger Corman and Vincent Price films where the best of them were creepy and entertaining. Based on an unfinished short story, 'Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper' intrigued me with a great concept and the reviews here were nowhere near as bad as feared.

Especially when the rating was very low, which from personal experience recently has not been a good sign. Most of my recent low-budget viewings with low rating and mediocre to terrible reviews have been as bad and in some cases even worse. But I went with my gut instinct and saw 'Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper' anyway because it did seem like it would be one of my better recent low-budget viewings. And it actually was, not perfect and the potential is not completely lived up to but in no way is it wasted.

Starting with the good things, Vernon Wells is great and generally the main performers were better than average. The music is both quirky and ominous and the direction when the film gets going is assured. 'Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper' wisely plays it straight with a little tongue-in-cheek going on and appreciated and admired the more ambitious storytelling when the action properly kicked in.

The characters were not as annoying as feared and don't make as many frustrating and illogical decision making like some films seen recently did (this is always also including bigger budget films that were box office successes if variable critically). Parts are creepy and there is are a few fun set pieces. The threat actually has personality and generated creepiness.

Low budget however does show, the film did need a grander and more elaborate setting while the photography can be too claustrophobic and the effect ropy at best. The dialogue has a lot of cheese and awkwardness and the secondary cast are wooden and some of the chemistry bland.

As said, 'Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper' can drag and the first third is really uneventful and makes one want to bail. Then there is the ending which is rushed and on the wrong side of silly.

Overall, better than expected though very flawed still. 6/10 Bethany Cox

I liked this one quite a bit. None really knows what Edgar Allan Poe had in mind for the ending, he died before this story was finished, but I think the filmmakers did an excellent job of finishing the tale.

I have never read this piece of unfinished work by Poe, so I cannot compare. I have Poe's Complete Works but this one, although unfinished, was never added to the collection - I looked today for it in the book.

Worth watching if you like the older style of horror films and/or Edgar Allan Poe's tales. Bravo to the filmmakers for creating a good horror film for today's world... most of them today aren't actually horror but more of a simple gore fest to veg-out for viewing... this film instead works with the viewers mind as good horror should be.

9/10

I was genuinely thrilled to watch "Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper", especially since Poe was such an influential figure in the horror literature. And the cover/poster of the movie also really looked great and that really lured me in. And the cover/poster of the movie actually shows promise of something of good production.

The movie, however, turned out to fail miserably at living up to what I expected from it. First of all, the movie seemed to accomplish way too much on too small a budget. And while the movie certainly had a great atmosphere, it was just permeated by a production value that was less than mediocre.

This wasn't a particular great transition from written format to visual format, and the movie wasn't overly entertaining, much less captivating or interesting. And I do believe that to be because of the slow paced story, and the fact that very little happened throughout the course of the entire movie. And when something actually did happen, it was just met with questionable effects and equally questionable acting.

The effects in "Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper" were definitely tinted by being low budget, and the shambling creatures that encroached on the people in the lighthouse were laughable to look at, especially since the effects and make-up were not nicely made.

Furthermore, the movie has a very small cast ensemble, so there was a lot of weight on the shoulders of the cast. And it didn't really work out great for the movie, as the acting throughout the movie was rigid, wooden and just oozed with mediocrity.

"Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper" was anything but scary or unsettling in anyway, and it didn't really capture the essence and root of Poe's written words, which just goes to prove that there is a lot of depth and volume to written words.

If you are a fan of Edgar Allan Poe's writings, then there is very little to find fulfilling here in director Benjamin Cooper vision of "Edgar Allan Poe's Lighthouse Keeper". I was tempted a couple of times throughout the course of this movie to get up and find something else to watch, but I stuck with it, as I wanted to see if it got better, given the fact that this was after all fashioned after the written words of one of the most influential writers in horror history.

The lighthouse here merely managed to light up 3 out of 10 stars in my opinion. Hardly worth the time or the effort.

The story is complicated while it says its scary But it isn't, I don't Know why people will like this movie but this is one of my worst movie I have watched! Totally disappointing! AND THE COVER OF THE MOVIE LOOKS LIKE A GOOD ONE, NO SPOILERS BUT LOUSY MOVIE!!