Netflix’s First Major Star-Studded Movie of 2023 Arrives This Weekend

We’re only a few days into 2023, but Netflix isn’t wasting any time bulking up its library with star-studded titles. On Friday, the streamer’s anticipated mystery thriller film The Pale Blue Eye, one of Netflix’s first original films of 2023, debuts on the Netflix streaming platform. The Scott Cooper-directed film enjoyed an initial theatrical run in select cinemas on Dec. 23.

Adapted from Louis Bayard’s 2003 novel of the same name, The Pale Blue Eye acts as a sort of origin story for famed writer Edgar Allen Poe. Set in the 1830s, the movie stars Christian Bale as Detective Augustus Landor. Faced with the gruesome murder of a cadet at then-fledgling West Point, and under intense pressure to solve the case, he recruits the help of Henry Melling’s Poe, a young cadet with a disdain for the rigors of the military and a penchant for poetry. Along with Bale and Melling, the star-studded cast includes Gillian Anderson, Lucy Boynton, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Toby Jones, Harry Lawtey, Simon McBurney, Hadley Robinson, Timothy Spall, and Robert Duvall.

Set to be one of Netflix’s highest-profile releases this month, the streamer spent about $55 million to make The Pale Blue Eye a Netflix original film, according to a previous report by Deadline.Netflix purchased the title at the European Film Market (EFM) and may have broken a spending record in doing so. The streamer reportedly beat out multiple competitors for the project.

While the film will undoubtedly draw eyes with its star-studded cast, The Pale Blue Eye is being met with mixed reviews from critics. The film currently holds a 66% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. While that score is high enough to earn the movie a certified fresh rating, the film’s critics consensus isn’t all that great, reading that “The Pale Blue Eye lacks its source material’s piercing gaze.” However, per that consensus, “This well-cast mystery is just intriguing enough to investigate.” Writing for The Washington Post, Michael O’Sullivan dubbed the movie “a stylish and smart telling of what is at heart macabre malarkey,” with Forbes‘ Scott Phillips writing that “The Pale Blue Eye is far from perfect, but it’s still worth a watch if you’re a fan of crime procedurals. It’ll pass the time pleasantly enough until something better comes along.” The film holds a 73% audience score.

The Pale Blue Eye is produced by Cooper, Bale, Tyler Thompson, and John Lesher. Tracey Landon, Dylan Weathered, Bayard, Chris Sharp, Jennifer Lamb, Emily Salveson and Ryan Smith executive produce. The Pale Blue Eye makes its Netflix debut on Friday, Jan. 6.