Plot: What’s it about?
Outside of hearing the name, I couldn’t tell you one song Hank Williams sings. I can tell you that country music is one of my least favorite genres, so it’s usually my own choice to avoid something. After seeing this film and some of William’s songs featured, that was more than enough for me. The film begins in December, 1944 and Williams is played by Tom Hiddleston and he does a more than capable job here. Very early on in the film, he marries Audrey (Elizabeth Olsen). Williams is a singer with big dreams, but his bad habits keep him from maintaining the stable lifestyle required for this career path. His wife even sings with him on stage, but that doesn’t always go well for them. We see several of the struggles in William’s life such as alcoholism among other things. We spend a good bit of the time in the recording studio as well. One issue comes up with Audrey’s singing, and it not reaching the satisfaction of some. All these trials and tribulations lead up to William’s untimely and premature death in 1953.
I think it’s largely because they’ve been made so many times that just by default, I Saw the Light has nothing new to say. I’m reminded of the sports genre where even some of the better ones can’t avoid the clichés often found in the genre. Outside of the topic himself, that being Williams, there’s really nothing shown here that I haven’t seen in countless other biopics of this sort. We get the rowdy drunk screaming at Williams on stage, troubles with the wife, and music managers comings across as greedy and heartless. We’re even shown glimpses of Williams and his alcoholism. Truthfully, we’ve seen all this before, and there’s not much depth to any of it. At no time does this turn into a bad film, but it never comes close to greatness, either. It’s almost like a cliff notes version of this man’s life. Hiddleston as the lead is the best thing about the film. He really gets into character and never appears to be trying too hard. I just wish the film was more ambitious and showed me something that I hadn’t seen before.
Video: How’s it look?
It should come as little surprise that the transfer is just fine. I did enjoy the overall look to the film, and the transfer presents it nicely. Set in the late 1940’s and early 50’s, we see a lot of old timey vehicles and what not. Background shots also show strong details as well. All in all, this transfer leaves little room for complaints. The print is pristine and colors always nice and smooth. The image is AVC encoded with a 2.40:1 ratio.
Audio: How’s it sound?
We get a passable DTS HD track. Passable, but there’s nothing terribly wrong with it either. It never becomes a terrible engaging track, but it satisfies. Vocals and al are fine, but it feels a tad limited during the musical performances. Still, I don’t think fans will mind too much.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Illuminating A Legend: Inside I Saw The Light – Your standard EPK with interviews with the cast and crew, some behind the scenes footage, praise for the subject (Hank Williams) and some more.
- Talking Hank – This one is a bit more engaging with Tom Hiddleston and his coach Rodney Crowell as they discuss the approach to the film, Hiddleston’s performances and more.
- Audio Commentary – Director Marc Abraham actually delivers a pretty self-effacing commentary track and clearly isn’t too full of himself. It’s informative, yet not dull and dry. Fans of the movie will certainly want to give it a listen.
- Deleted Scenes – Ten total, each with an introduction by Marc Abraham. This is really the way deleted scenes should be done, not just arbitrarily placed out there.
- A Night in Nashville: Premiere and Musical Performance by Tom Hiddleston – The film’s premier in Nashville, TN as well as Hiddleston singing a few more of Williams’ songs.
The Bottom Line
Light only offers glimpse into Hank William’s life, but never gets too deep. It may be that I’ve seen too many biopics of this sort that this just feels like a product more than anything else. It did little for me, but those curious might want to try a rental before anything else. I can’t imagine it’s something most will want to watch multiple times despite their enjoyment.
