Keep the Lights On tells the story of two men who meet through a casual encounter and then embark on a decade long journey that has them battling the confines of love, addition, betrayal and friendship. In the end you can't help but be exhausted as both men vulnerably put their hearts on the line in an effort to fully understand the meaning behind their courtship.
Written and directed by Ira Sachs, Keep the Lights On is a dramatized look at a very similar relationship that Ira had himself during the late 90s. While there seems to be a bit of raw emotion and underlining hatred coming from one side of the relationship, Sachs is able to create a polarizing connection that many will see as detrimental long before the final break up. Lead actors Thure Lindhardt and Zachary Booth share an unusual chemistry as you begin to feel for each as they tumble their way through the rigors of dating life.
Sachs opted to use a slightly grainy landscape that helps to personify the late 90s setting of the film, keeping colors drab and obsolete as a way of focusing in on the story at question. Every character serves a purpose as no shot is wasted, creating a solid film that feels as vulnerable as it does strong.
About Stephen Davis
I owe this hobby/career to the one and only Stephanie Peterman who, while interning at Fox, told me that I had too many opinions and irrelevant information to keep it all bottled up inside. I survived my first rated R film, Alive, at the ripe age of 8, it took me months to grasp the fact that Julia Roberts actually died at the end of Steel Magnolias, and I might be the only person alive who actually enjoyed Sorority Row…for its comedic value of course. While my friends can drink you under the table, I can outwatch you when it comes iconic, yet horrid 80s films like Adventures in Babysitting and Troop Beverly Hills. I have no shame when it comes to what I like, and if you have a problem with that, then we’ll settle it on the racquetball court. I see too many movies to actually win any film trivia contest, so don’t waste your first pick on me. My friends rent movies from my bookcase shelves, and one day I do plan to start charging. I long to live in LA, where my movie obsession will actually help me fit in, but for now I am content with my home in Austin. I prefer indies to blockbusters, Longhorns to Sooners and Halloween to Friday the 13th. I miss the classics, as well as John Ritter, and I hope to one day sit down and interview the amazing Kate Winslet.
