Edgar Allan Poe has already been heavily portrayed as a character in literature and popular media, and Netflix’s The Pale Blue Eye is the latest film to do so. Based on the novel by Lewis Bayard, this film introduces our beloved Poe as a peculiar young cadet undergoing training at the Military Academy at West Point. Detective, Augustus Lander. Augustus Lander is appointed by the military to solve the bizarre suicide of a cadet. Edgar A. Poe secretly serves as Detective Lander’s assistant while making new friends, experiencing new losses, and ultimately solving a murder mystery on his own. And predictably, occult and spooky themes surround his two characters and the events that unfold in the film.
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Edgar Allan Poe lied about his age and enlisted in the United States Army in 1827. Later he also transferred to the Military Academy at West Point, New York, where he was actually a cadet in 1830. This year is indicated by a “Pale Blue Eye”. However, there is no record that Poe was actually involved in solving murders during this period. The Landor and Marquise family characters, and all events in the film’s plot, are fictional and were first written by novelist Louis Bayard and later adapted into a film by director Scott Cooper. By the time he was at West Point, Poe had already published his first book of poetry, so the characters in the film refer to the young cadet as an already published poet. In fact, Poe wanted to end his life at West Point around 1831 and was deliberately court-martialed and expelled from the army. He then practiced poetry and literature and established himself as a huge figure in the history of literature and culture. In the novelist Bayard’s own words, his work, and therefore this film, is like Poe’s origin story, which is inextricably linked to his real life, although it is undoubtedly fictional.
Despite having a very warm and soft soul, young Po’s external words and expressions are always serious, even harsh. I notice something. He speaks about death and despair with ease, which is unusual among people. However, it can also be argued that the severely morbid and macabre imagery and tones characteristic of Poe’s literary work are not yet present in his character. It’s like being a young man before he became a creepy artist. His experience here may have started to drive him into that darkness. There is something about the death of Cadet Fry and the subsequent theft of his dead heart that entertains Poe. Because he approaches the investigative detective and tries to get to know him. Since the character of Augustus Landau is still unknown to the young man, the only possible reason for him to approach the detective may be to somehow find out more about the case. It is not hard to imagine how amusing it is to cut hearts out of cows, sheep, and humans. Friendship, or at least dating, begins between the two men as he begins working for Landor and tries to find more information among the Academy and other cadets. uses his excellent skills to decipher the message in English on a small note on At this moment he realizes that Landor is also very skilled. The fact that Poe started admiring Lander for the detective skills the veteran possesses is evident, and he really plays the role of a sidekick.
This admiration isn’t just on Po’s part. It is felt at one point even in Landor. Landor becomes concerned when detectives are informed that both Fry and Ballinger quarreled with Poe before being murdered in such a gruesome fashion. He confronts Po about this and expresses frustration at the fact that the cadets didn’t tell him about all this. Landor broke off a fight with Poe and Ballinger the night before they died, but the fact that Fry had a similar altercation is not known. I know–it was himself–but he’s worried about Poe now, too. , suspicion apparently fell on the poet. Captain Hitchcock actually tells Landor directly that Poe is the most suspected and only a detective is needed to find all this evidence. When Marquis Artemus’ conspiracy to steal the Heart of an Occult Ritual for his sister’s treatment is revealed, Landor doesn’t have to think twice about blaming Artemus for the murder. It’s not that Landor is guilt-ridden when he’s suspected of his crimes. Ultimately, Landor’s character is that of a stubborn and abrasive man, a veteran not only in his profession as a detective, but in life in general. However, he still cares about Po. Because by this time Landor had also developed an admiration for Poe. The young poet, brilliantly played by Harry Melling, must be mentioned for his impressive charm and self-confidence. at the very end, with all the confrontations and confessions made, Landor actually wishes it was Poe that his daughter Mathilde ran into the night of the Academy Ball instead of the three cadets coercing her. I admit it. Knowing that Poe’s kind heart and respectful demeanor are not common among men her age, Lander enjoys the company of her young apprentices whenever she can.
Considering the fact that Poe is such an important part of the plot, Poe’s character is also given plenty of depth. He shares with Landor the struggles he constantly has to face in trying to fit in with society. This continues throughout the poet’s life. At the Academy, his appearance, knowledge, and personality are a matter of ridicule and contempt. Cadet Poe’s looks and composure stand out among very traditionally masculine figures. Although he is very different from Artemus and his friends Ballinger and Stoddard, Poe’s charm also allows him to befriend them. Through this friendship, he first meets Lee, Artemis’ sister, and the attraction he feels is felt almost instantly. Agree to spend time, so this works both ways. In perhaps the most fitting way, Poe takes Lee to the cemetery on their first outing together instead of their usual place for romance. When Lee has a seizure during this outing, she probably expects her date to flee the scene or fear for their safety, so she’s even more touched when Po helps her through the experience. It is likely that Lee was looking for someone to eventually sacrifice himself for the ritual, and that Poe was an easy target. But such considerations probably alienate the romantic possibilities that really existed between the two characters. Lee was a true believer in the ritual she wanted to do, so her love and admiration for Poe was probably also very genuine. Of course, if Edgar Allan Poe is involved, the occult isn’t far off, so the Marquis family may be descended from Father Henri Le Claire, and they may have done Lee’s work in black magic. All the parts about trying to cure the disease are rather apt. This guy was already into death and grim imagery in movies before this. Perhaps this experience that nearly killed him only brings Poe closer to his Gothic style and outlook on life.
In Pale Blue Eye, Edgar Allan Poe as a poet is neither as important nor as important as he is as a person. The young cadet has expressed a desire to continue writing poetry in his life and seems confident of becoming a literary practitioner in the future. He even says he makes himself and his work memorable. But more importantly is the loss of trust and love that Poe experiences throughout the events of the film.Perhaps the first romantic relationship in his life was with Lea Marquis, although she was married to her older brother. died when the Himuro burned down along with Artemus. The poet is deeply affected by this, but is even more appalled by the fact that Landor, his best friend and companion at the time, also let him down. Not only did Landor turn out to be the killer, he hid this fact from Poe as well. Even though the cadet opened up to Landor about himself and his deepest struggles, he was kept away from Landor’s deepest secret. related and seems to affect Po the most. The fact that even though Landor thought of himself as a detective’s friend, he was hiding his grief from him hurts him badly. If Poe hadn’t been smart and observant, he wouldn’t have known about Landor’s grief and crimes. Ultimately, though, there is a shade of selflessness to this character of Poe that makes it perhaps one of his most notable things. This is why he agreed to be a living dummy for Lee’s ceremonies, and this is the reason why he let Lander last. A tear in his eye and a badly bruised Poe burns a small note that may have proved Landor’s murder. This grief is perhaps not due to the realization that he has been helping murderers for so long. That’s because Landor made him believe his lies too. This grief is probably because Poe not only lost his lover at Lee, but also his friend at Landor.
