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Category:    Home > Reviews > Drama > Biography > Biopic > Music > Country > Blues > Rock > Addiction > I Saw The Light (2015/Sony Blu-ray)

I Saw The Light (2015/Sony Blu-ray)



Picture: B+ Sound: A+ Extras: A Film: A-



Based on the true story of Hank Williams, Marc Abraham's I Saw The Light (2015) is the story of his life from his rise to stardom to his fall from grace, how he (Tom Hiddleston) became a country & western blues legend, but his legend was only matched the personal tragedies in his life. Behind the stage and the spotlight was the was all the alcohol, drunken nights and affairs and which eventually lead to his early death.


They say what makes county blues so good is because songwriters based on real life experience and Williams in that aspect was a gifted country songwriter, a singer and star, even when he was onstage he was envied by his own band members and even his own wife/wives. As he traveled between concerts and show, his antics eventually lead to his poor health and then caused him broken marriages and missed concerts. He even influenced the rise if Rock 'N Roll, so significant was his contributions to American music and inevitably, music of the world.


This Hank Williams biopic has received mixed responses and I couldn't tell if they want to blame his early death was attributed to his drinking, fame or his managers overworking him (but he definitely looked a lot older than he was when he died). I works for me and features his great music, which you can read more about on this site. Cheers to Brit Hiddleston for his transformation and though the production is inconsistent, supporting performances by Elizabeth Olsen, Bradley Whitford, Cherry Jones and David Krumholtz stop this from being more than just another formula biopic.


The 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image was shot on an Arri Alexa XT HD camera in color with some (so-so looking) black & white shots. I can look good, but also has some minor issues, yet the lossless DTS HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 mix us a real sonic winner and a plus for this release. Extras include Deleted Scenes, featurettes A Night in Nashville, Talking Hank and Illuminating a Legend, a feature length audio commentary and trailers.



- Ricky Chiang


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