Netflix has released the full trailer for its upcoming Edgar Allan Poe mystery, The Pale Blue Eye, starring Christian Bale and Harry Melling.
Directed by Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart, Antlers), Netflix's The Pale Blue Eye focuses on the much-loved 19th-century author of classic stories like The Fall of the House of Usher and Murders at the Rue Morgue. The film, also written by Cooper, is based on Louis Bayard's 2006 gothic thriller of the same name, and the new trailer promises an eerie mystery worthy of Poe himself.
The new Pale Blue Eye trailer features a moody atmospheric 19th-century world where retired detective Augustus Landor (Bale), attempts to solve a series of murders with the help of a young Poe played by Harry Melling (Netflix's The Queen's Gambit). The Pale Blue Eye synopsis describes the film as a “gripping whodunit that’s also an Edgar Allan Poe origin story” set in 1830 at West Point Academy. There are hints in the trailer of the stories that would make Poe famous for his gothic and disturbing storytelling, including his famous short story, The Tell-Tale Heart. “West Point, 1830. In the early hours of a gray winter morning, a cadet is found dead. But after the body arrives at the morgue, tragedy becomes savagery when it’s discovered that the young man’s heart has been skillfully removed," the synopsis reads.
Poe's horrific work has been endlessly anthologized and adapted throughout literary and pop culture, and he has often appeared as a figure in various mediums. However, there are far fewer renditions of the writer’s own life, so The Pale Blue Eye will likely draw in viewers by mixing many of the real-life details of Poe's life with the mystery genre. The film’s historical rending of 1830s America looks on point, casting a new light on the cultural milieu from which Poe created his greatest works.
Bale, who stars as the intense detective, is no stranger to period dramas like The Prestige (2006), The New World (2005), and the recent Amsterdam (2022), bringing his adept acting skills to the character of Augustus Landor. Melling brings a creepy introspection to his Poe portrayal that fans of the famous author will no doubt appreciate. The Pale Blue Eye cast also includes Gillian Anderson (The Crown), Lucy Boynton (Bohemian Rhapsody), Charlotte Gainsbourg (Antichrist), and Robert Duvall (The Judge).
The Pale Blue Eye debuts in select theaters on December 23, 2022, and will begin streaming on Netflix on January 6, 2023.
Source: Netflix/YouTube