Christian Bale squares off with Braintree's Sylvanus Thayer in 'The Pale Blue Eye'

A key historical figure from Braintree is a character in Netflix’s first big movie of 2023.

British actor Timothy Spall plays Col. Sylvanus Thayer in the gothic mystery “The Pale Blue Eye,” which earned the No. 1 spot this week on Netflix’s Top 10 English-language films list. The movie debuted on the chart with 39.86 million hours viewed and was in the Top 10 in 92 countries.

Thayer had no children of his own but is known as “The Father of West Point,” serving as superintendent from 1817 to 1833. Thayer was born in Braintree, and his birthplace at 786 Washington St. is a tourist attraction. The public library and Thayer Academy are both named after him.

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Directed by Scott Cooper (“Crazy Heart”), the “The Pale Blue Eye” stars Christian Bale as a detective hired to investigate the grisly murder of a West Point cadet. The movie co-stars Harry Melling as a young Edgar Allan Poe, who helps look for clues long before he became a famous writer. Poe was a West Point cadet for six months in 1830, but the movie is a work of fiction.

On screen, Spall plays Thayer as a no-nonsense man who wants quick answers. He worries about public impressions once news of the murder spreads and wishes to avoid scandal at all costs.

"There are certain powerful senators in Washington who would like nothing more than to see us fail utterly, to shut down," Thayer tells Augustus Landor (Bale) in an early scene. The script, which Cooper also wrote, highlights Thayer's deep devotion to the fledgling military academy, asking Landor "to help save the honor of the United States Military Academy."

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Spall is a versatile character actor, best known for his work in the “Harry Potter” franchise as the villainous Peter “Wormtail” Pettigrew. Spall also drew notice for his starring role as J.M.W. Turner in “Mr. Turner,” and for parts in “The King’s Speech," "The Damned United," "Secrets & Lies” and “Spencer.”

The movie also stars Simon McBurney, Toby Jones, Gillian Anderson, Robert Duvall and Lucy Boynton.

Thayer died Sept. 7, 1872, at his home in Braintree and is buried at the West Point Cemetery on the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy.

"The Pale Blue Eye" was released in select theaters on Dec. 23, 2022, for its Oscar-qualifying run. It debuted Jan. 6 on Netflix.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Christian Bale takes on Braintree's Sylvanus Thayer in 'Pale Blue Eye'