• Home
  • Meetings
  • Events
  • Blog
  • E-Board
  • Around Boston
  • Join
Northeastern University's Film Enthusiasts Club
.

Elizabeth Johnson-Wilson on I Saw the Light

4/1/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
I went into watching Marc Abraham’s I Saw the Light not knowing much about legendary country singer Hank Williams. And I must say, I left the theater not knowing too much more. The biopic, while succeeding in the characterization of its focus, failed in most everything else.

The movie opens beautifully, with a slow, steadycam circling around our main character performing an acoustic song. The opening introduces us to and sets us up for the gorgeousness that is Tom Hiddleston as Williams: unflinchingly unapologetic with an attention to nuance in character that successfully convinces the viewer that Hiddleston is indeed Williams, the one aspect of this character in which the film didn’t fail. It also sets up a motif in coloring: the movie was drenched in glowy, yellow sepia tones, seemingly vintage and romantic, hinting at the idealized, romantic view that the public of the time had about Williams’ personal life, while, in actuality, it was just the opposite; this caused the yellow hues to then take on a dusty, sickly quality, symbolizing the deterioration of Williams’ life and health.
​

The framing was interesting throughout the film, employing much use of the close-up, with most central focuses right in the center of the frame. It seemed like the use of close-up was trying to bring us in, to get the viewer closer to the characters; however, it never really got us there. One of my biggest issues with the film is that I never much felt for them. Meaning, I know, just from life and experience as a human being, when things are supposed to be sad: when there was divorce or death portrayed, I was sad because I knew to be sad and of course it’s sad, seeing that this is a portrayal of someone’s real life. But the movie never made me feel sad. The film always hinted at attempting to take us on the emotional roller coaster that appeared to be Williams’ life, with ratcheting highs and deep, deep lows, filled with catharsis and movie-positioning that induce feeling in its viewers, what we have come to expect from movie-viewing experiences. But the film never really went there with all the emotional, cinematic material they had to work with. It mainly focused on Williams’ marital issues, but didn’t show much of them, resulting in supposedly traumatic or upsetting events seeming slightly sudden, happenstance, non-sequitur, and kind of weird. And that choice in focus led the filmmakers to miss a focus in and portrayal of the very reason upon which Williams made his fame: songwriting. We never saw the creative process behind Williams’ music; instead, the film just occasionally featured a performance from Hiddleston, only because the filmmakers felt they couldn’t completely ignore it. And even though he was drinking in most of the scenes, the film apparently trying to depict Williams’ downfall through addiction, they didn't even do his love affair with alcohol justice, depicting drunken scenes as a device to move us through the story, without much build to them, or fallout or portrayal of consequence after them. In fact, the pace was like that of the Alabama Williams was from - no highs or lows or drama, just moving along slowly to move, one foot plodding in front of the other, no sense of purpose or destination, like the heat rising off the street on a summer day.
​

Apparently, I Saw the Light was originally intended for an Oscar campaign. And while Hiddleston and Elizabeth Olsen, who played Williams wife, could have made the leading actor shortlists easily, with their depth in portrayal and disappearances into the characters, the vehicle for these winning performances was much, much less. The film had a great source material – a short, tragic life of a musical genius, riddled with addiction, affairs, and enigma – but didn’t do its icon of focus justice, making bad decisions in focus, storytelling, and script. All in all, it was very nothing. A nothing story, set to a nothing pace, saying nothing of importance about a very important person, who in fact revolutionized and helped define, spread, and create a genre. It was in effect, worse than merely flat-out bad: it was a disappointment. At least, it’ll inspire me to listen to Hank Williams’ eloquent music. Maybe I’ll learn something about him that way.

Rating: D
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Categories

    All
    AJ Martin
    Andy Robinson
    Anime
    Anthony Formicola
    Anu Gulati
    Arjun Agarwal
    Arzu Martinez
    Ben Garbow
    Brandon Isaacson
    Brian Hamilton
    Carter Sigl
    Dan Simeone
    Discussion
    Elizabeth Johnson Wilson
    Eliza Rosenberry
    Emily Fisler
    Erick Sanchez
    Eric Tatar
    Essays
    Festivals
    Gabrielle Ulubay
    Haley Emerson
    Here's Some Movies
    Ian Wolff
    IFF Boston
    IFFBoston 2015
    Interviews
    Isaac Feldberg
    Kunal Asarsa
    Library
    Lists
    Marguerite Darcy
    Marissa Marchese
    Mary Tobin
    Meghan Murphy
    Mike Muse
    Mitch Macro
    Neel Shah
    Netflix Instant Watch
    Parth Parekh
    Patrick Roos
    Profiles
    Reviews
    Short Films
    Television
    This Week In Movies
    Tyler Rosini

    Want to Write for Us?

    Contact NUFEC President Ian Wolff at nufecblog@gmail.com if you're interested in writing for this blog!

    Archives

    April 2022
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    October 2019
    September 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.