Christian Bale, as an ex-cop looking for a killer, headlines this 19th-century murder mystery, but Harry Melling steals the show as his sidekick Edgar Allan Poe.

What's worth your time in movies and TV this weekend? EW's critics review the latest releases: 'M3GAN', 'The Pale Blue Eye', 'Velma', and 'Alert'.

Christian Bale leads a cast of grotesques in Scott Cooper’s over-ripe Edgar Allen Poe ‘origin story’ for Netflix

Everything is set up for “The Pale Blue Eye” to be the eerie serial-killer story you’d expect when you find out a character is named after Poe. But the movie wastes its potential.

Even when the 19th century mystery takes some insanely big dramatic swings, Bale is immersed in his performance.

A hardened detective teams up with a young Edgar Allen Poe to solve a murder in Scott Cooper's chilly thriller.

Bale is a detective who teams up with Edgar Allan Poe, played by Harry Melling like a Benoit Blanc in training. But the mystery never catches fire.

Amid a starry cast – which includes Gillian Anderson and Timothy Spall – it’s Harry Melling who is the real draw here

Christian Bale and Gillian Anderson star in a spooky but silly Netflix thriller

The Batman star plays a grim and grumpy detective who manhandles corpses and tracks down clues in 'The Pale Blue Eye'.

With a filmography of muscular acting showcases, patient tempos, and emphasis on brooding atmosphere, it’s evident Scott Cooper has been influenced by the endearingly ramshackle character studies of 1970s American cinema. In an era where this particular kind of film seems to be the lowest priority for every studio, it’s also refreshing to find a

A retired detective and a young Edgar Allan Poe team up to investigate serial killings in a Scott Cooper film that values style over substance

Christian Bale and a quality cast can't save this murder-mystery.

Scott Cooper's 'The Pale Blue Eye' too often feels like one of the many corpses in its story: cold, lifeless, and without a heart.

Filmmaker Scott Cooper’s latest is a gothic thriller about a grizzled detective (Bale) and the young poet investigating a series of brutal killings.

Christian Bale stars in this unbelievable but compelling film about a killer hunting and mutilating corpses at the U.S. Military Academy.

Despite the best efforts of Christian Bale, Gillian Anderson and co, this wintry crime yarn featuring a young Edgar Allan Poe descends into farce

There's something about the world's first detective novelist that makes writers and filmmakers envision him as a gentleman sleuth. A courtly, erudite romantic with morbid streak and a Virginia drawl, Edgar Allan Poe must have been one of the inspirations for "Glass Onion" peeler Benoit Blanc. That Poe himself is on the case in the…

A not-so-great thriller that features some damn fine performances.

Star-studded horror finds Edgar Allan Poe in a Gothic mystery of his own

The wintry murder mystery, starring Christian Bale and Harry Melling as a young Edgar Allan Poe, is a whodunit reinvented as a 19th-century mood board.

Scott Cooper's impressive 'Pale Blue Eyes' stars Christian Bale and acts like a gothic murder mystery, a father/son drama and more.