When the movie first opened, I was captured
with Hank Williams (Hiddleston) singing “Cold, Cold Heart” without
accompaniment and the chiaroscuro effect in the scene. The mood was just right, and it was
deeply moving. Unfortunately, two
basic flaws in I Saw the Light
emerged soon after, which I attribute to Marc Abraham’s screenplay and
direction. He has primarily worked
as a producer without much experience in writing and direction, hence, the
movie sags almost every time there is dialog. It doesn’t matter whether the conversation is between
husband and wife in intimate moments or band members talking to one another or
to agents—he puts the audience to sleep.
I marveled at how such an interesting person’s life could be made
boring.
The other problem I had with the film is the
number of scenes where neither the issue nor the personalities involved are
explored; they’re simply left unresolved.
A particular example is Hank and his agent Fred Rose (Whitford) visiting
the MGM Studio, and their host wants Hank to take off his hat. Hank refuses, and we don’t know why
it’s so important to the MGM producer or to Hank. We don’t even know whether he actually took it off or
didn’t. And we don’t know whether
the incident ruined Hank’s chance to be supported by MGM. With so many of such scenes in a film,
it becomes unsettling.
Hank Williams was decidedly a fascinating,
complex person with a markedly eventful life, and whatever interest is
maintained in the movie is because we’re curious about him and want o
understand him and because Hiddleston aced the role. Even though we’re presented with event after event in his
life, it’s more like a chronicle; there is not much exploration into Hank’s
character in the larger sense of the word that would essentially help us
understand him.
On the other hand, Tom Hiddleston has done the
seemingly impossible, converting his British accent into American country,
learning to sing on pitch and play the guitar (tutored by Rodney Crowell), and
moving his body like a person with spina bifida—all for this movie. I had to smile when in an interview he
said that he had heard a few Hank Williams’ songs before he got the role, but
was more intrigued with the word
‘honky tonk’; he had no idea what it meant, but he loved the sound of it. Hiddleston put on the Williams persona
so completely and convincingly, it fit like a body suit.
The talents of other main actors were fine
supports: Elizabeth Olsen as the
disillusioned but shallow wife; Bradley Whitford as the agent-like-a-father
Fred Rose; and Cherry Jones as the cloying, possessive mother of Hank. I had anticipated seeing I Saw the Light, so was disappointed
that it contained so little “fleshing out” of the characters.
On the other hand, Tom Hiddleston’s performance
is worth the price of a ticket to the movie theater. The last song, “Your Cheatin’ Heart” is a perfect ending. After seeing important events in his
life, he could just as well be singing the song to himself as to someone else.
A reminder that good writing and
direction are essential, although sometimes an actor’s performance is worth a
viewing.
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