The Pale Blue Eye

It turns out that Scott Cooper does need studio oversight, because his biggest problem is his tired and unimaginative direction and his unwillingness to let any material on the cutting room floor (figuratively speaking). The story isn't bad and the finale in particular is very strong, it's just that the overall investigation lacks traction and lurches from one lead to the next without building suspense or anything original. Fortunately, we have the great Bale, who really carries it on his shoulders. Melling handles Poe very convincingly and ably seconds Bale. Shore’s music makes for half the atmosphere. Such a shame because the potential was enormous, especially given the great conclusion. (13/01/2023)

The Pale Blue Eyes had a lot of potential to become an atmospheric period crime classic featuring E.A. Poe as a character. After watching it, however, I have to say that that the potential remains woefully untapped. Above all, the film suffers from a long running time and slow pace – the story could certainly have fit into a hundred minutes and would have been more compelling and tight. Even from an audiovisual point of view, the film didn't work on me as I expected. I do, however, praise the last third and its two twists. The first is oddly predictable, but the second is quite surprising, though it have come 20 or 30 minutes earlier. Poe's character was fine, but by the end it was too much. Better three stars! (13/01/2023)

Oh, my God, that was like 14 days long. Otherwise, it's a classic "Guess the murderer" type crime thriller with some pretty cool period visuals and an unexciting but average Christian Bale, but the running time is just horribly tedious. A skippable piece that no one will remember in two days. (10/01/2023)

A film where pretty much everything is right except how long it is, or rather how long it feels. Had they cut half an hour, which they sure could have done, it would have been better. Otherwise I really have nothing to complain about, the acting and cinematography are excellent, the story is interesting and the ending is strong. (15/01/2023)

Occultism, a treacherous heart, or a motif as old as humanity itself? The criminal plot was meant to be intriguingly woven with the problematic personality of the founder of the detective genre (Melling, with his cheekbones, could easily play a vampire from an eighties horror film without needing makeup), but it somehow didn’t succeed in the candlelit gloom. Anticipation for a gothic crime film with horror elements wasn’t entirely dampened, but it seems that in terms of tightness and the ability to build atmosphere, Scott Cooper is starting to run Out of the Furnace. The final shot will leave only those uncertain who don’t know how the Guardian of Gotham manages to cope with loss and work at heights. (17/01/2023)