The Ligonier Valley Historical Society restored Laughlintown’s Compass Inn Museum to match its 1830s heyday as a stopover for stagecoach travelers and drovers.
That has made it an ideal location to shoot footage for the film adaptation of “The Pale Blue Eye,” a tale of murder and revenge set in the same period.
A crew took to the woods of Western Pennsylvania Monday to begin filming the Netflix project that reunites actor Christian Bale and director Scott Cooper. The pair previously brought their talents to the Pittsburgh area for “Out of the Furnace.”
Filming at Compass Inn is slated to occur over two days in mid-December.
The site matched the vision of Cooper and others involved in bringing the Louis Bayard novel to the screen.
“They fell in love with the Compass Inn,” unit publicist Pete Silbermann said. “It was absolutely perfect. There is a little bit of construction to build it out, but it’s a perfect location for the film.”
The movie takes place in 1830 at a military academy where a veteran detective (Bale) attempts to solve a string of murders with the assistance of a cadet who will later become the famous author Edgar Allen Poe.
Silbermann confirmed Compass Inn will stand in for a tavern visited by the academy’s faculty.
“We are very excited to have them here,” said Theresa Gay Rohall, executive director of the historical society. She was not at liberty to discuss any details of the film production.
Poe actually spent one year as a cadet at West Point, entering in March 1830 at 21. Patrons from West Point during that era were known to frequent a nearby tavern operated by “Benny” Havens.
Compass Inn, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, displays the original liquor license that permitted Benjamin Johnston to legally sell spirits at the inn. He owned the establishment from 1807 to 1813.
Production of “The Pale Blue Eye” is expected to continue in the region through mid-February.
“Everyone on our team is excited to have this production in the Laurel Highlands and cannot wait to see the Compass Inn and other local sites in the film,” said Anna Weltz, director of public relations for GO Laurel Highlands, the destination marketing organization for Westmoreland, Fayette and Somerset counties.
