The Pale Blue Eye

1830 and Detective Landor (Christian Bale) is summoned to the West Point academy to investigate the apparent suicide by hanging of a cadet, whose body was then subsequently mutilated. Unable to get much information from the closed shop academy, he enlists the help of a solitary cadet, one Edgar Allan Poe. Together they start to realise that this did not start with a suicide.

Enjoyable who and why dunnit mystery thriller set against the beautiful scenery and equally beautifully filmed backdrop of snow covered New York. Bale is convincing as the tough, canny detective haunted by the death of his wife and the disappearance of his daughter. Harry Melling as a truly eccentric Poe is also on good form delivering a performance just this side of over the top. Carrying this through with equal weight is the glorious supporting cast including Timothy Small as the camp commander, Simon McBurney cast against type as the tough Captain who isn't that keen on Landor being there, the great Toby Jones as the camp doctor, Robert Duvall as an eccentric expert that Bale consults and Gillian Anderson who can do no wrong in anything she does. A good, atmospheric and linear thriller then which should keep you guessing, although the coincidences in play as the story comes to a nonetheless satisfying conclusion are a bit of a stretch. Definitely worth catching.

While many period pieces drag on and seem to be rather uneventful imo this product from Scott Cooper certainly delivers on holding my full attention throughout with ominous settings and suspenseful scenery. Bale is obviously a huge part of that as well with his dedicated ambition as usual for his roles. The story doesn't drag and violence is on display, something that I've seen held back on in most thriller period pieces maybe aside from Sleepy Hollow (1998). Dare I say the execution of the set pieces and costumes were much more convincing as well and gave the film more authenticity. Overall I was surprised with this film and its effectiveness.

The story of a movie is definitely the most important thing in all its factors and elements. If a story is well used, everything will depend on the director to obtain a final product worthy of being remembered outside the year of release. This movie has a wonderful story. It is a period mystery that gives us the participation of a popular real writer as one of the key pieces within the pavilion of fictional characters. Mystery, drama, thriller carried out impeccably by a luxury cast. Christian Bale and Harry Melling are extraordinary. The photography is very well done, taking advantage of the elements of the time portrayed. Excellent setting and visual and special effects.

A great movie that gives 2023 a very good start.

This movie kept me hooked from the very beginning to the last scene. The atmosphere is mind-blowing, especially when watched during a winter night. The costumes felt very authentic and the cast did amazing job, especially Christian Bale as a detective and Harry Melling (who has become one of my favorite actors) as Edgar Allan Poe.

Another thing I must mention is the screenplay. The writers do not exaggerate the info-dumping and let the on-screen actions tell the story instead, which felt very natural. Some may complain about the runtime or the movie being boring. But although the opening is slow, it was necessary to build up the characters and establish a brilliantly twisted climax.

To me, "The Pale Blue Eye" seemed better than most other films of this genre that are being made by Hollywood these days.

Overall, I spent an enjoyable 2 hours and would recommend to anyone who is looking for a decent murder-mystery movie.

This movie at the heart of it, is a 19th century detective thriller with a twist. Set in the 1800s in a non-fictional location (West Point), with a non-fictional character (Edgar Allan Poe), in a fictional situation, makes for one engrossing & original story.

A very solid performance by both Christian Bale & Harry Melling. They brought their characters into the screen so convincingly. Both their performances where a stand-out.

Who would have thought that the boy who played Dudley Dursley (Harry Melling) in the "Harry Potter" movies would turn out to be such a great actor. His performance matches that of Christian Bale throughout the movie. IMO, Melling even outshining Bale. Such is the quality of Melling's portrayal.

The narrative is well paced, and beautifully shot. The set, costumes, and the old English dialogue, suits the period perfectly, and adds to the authenticity of the movie. This movie is not only a joy to watch but also to listen to. A directorial masterpiece by Scott Cooper.

VERDICT: If you like detective thrillers with a twist, then you'll love this movie. Highly recommended.