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Let There Be Light (1946)
Let There Be Light (1946) poster

Let There Be Light (1946)

Documentary, War • 58m

Director: John Huston

Cast: Walter Huston

Best English-friendly & video release

Updated 1 year ago


About the film

The final entry in a trilogy of films produced for the U.S. government by John Huston. Some returning combat veterans suffer scars that are more psychological than physical. This film follows patients and staff during their treatment. It deals with what would now be called PTSD, but at the time was categorised as psychoneurosis or shell-shock. Government officials deemed this 1946 film counterproductive to postwar efforts; it was not shown publicly until 1981.

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National Film Registry

Year of Induction: 2010

Featured in National Film Registry

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Director: Richard Brooks

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Video Notes:

4K restoration from Original Camera Negative

Director: Jonathan Demme

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

1991 Orion LaserDisc vs 2024 Arrow 4K Blu-ray

Additional Info:

Criterion Blu-ray has exclusive extras

Director: George B. Seitz

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Video Notes:

4K restoration from safety preservation elements

Director: Elaine May

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Cinématographe 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

Cinématographe 4K Blu-ray > MoC > Olive Films. From nicolas:

The master is good but it’s not that big an upgrade from the Olive Films disc and Vinegar Syndrome’ encode has some blocky highlights. A shame that they didn’t hire David Mackenzie here.

Audio Notes:

Cinématographe has unnecessary noise gating not present on the previous releases.

Director: Sidney Lumet

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly:

Kino Lorber US / Capelight DE 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · slow.pics (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

1.85:1: Kino Lorber 4K  / Capelight 4K

1.66:1: Criterion 4K

Video Notes:

1.85:1: Kino Lorber 4K  / Capelight 4K

1.66:1: Criterion 4K but low pass filtered

Comparison between the 4Ks, Criterion on the AR choice

Audio Notes:

Other discs have unnecessary filtering and sound worse, the difference isn't substantial but audible

Director: Dennis Hopper

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Sony UK 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Director: F. W. Murnau

Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

MoC OOP Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

Flicker Alley 4K confirmed for 2027 https://forum.blu-ray.com/showpost.php?p=24404584&postcount=1

Director: Stanley Kubrick

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Included in the Complete Kubrick box set with FiM encode of the same master from the Universal release without the filtering.

Audio Notes:

DTS:X mix on Universal 4K Blu-ray most closely approximates original surround mix

Additional Info:

Criterion DVD and Universal 4K Blu-ray has additional features not found on the Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Director: Sam Peckinpah

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Plaion Germany Blu-ray

Upcoming Release:

4K Blu-ray said to be coming from Criterion, per Bill Hunt

Video Notes:

Includes Director's Cut and Roadshow Version

Same master as old WB Blu-ray but better encoding

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

WB 4K

Sources: YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

An undeniably significant improvement from the BD yet still severely flawed. See DFIC's review.

Best Audio:

1984 MGM Hi-Fi VHS

More from John Huston

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Director: John Huston

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly & Video:

StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Best Audio:

Eureka Blu-ray

Audio Notes:

Eureka Blu-ray > StudioCanal 4K Blu-ray. Older DVD or LaserDisc probably even better

Additional Info:

All blu-ray releases so far is from the 2010 scan.

Director: John Huston

Best English-Friendly & Video:

WB Blu-ray

Best Audio:

1992 MGM VHS

Director: John Huston

4K · Solid
Best English-Friendly & Video:

2023 WB 4K Blu-ray

Best Audio:

HBO MAX WEB-DL/2000 R1 MGM DVD

Director: John Huston

Best English-Friendly:

Criterion Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

Criterion Blu-ray 2k scan

Best Audio:

1993 MGM LaserDisc

Director: John Huston

4K · Excellent
Best English-Friendly, Video & Audio:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab) · Blu-ray.com (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray see nic's review "fantastic restoration, beautifully graded with tasteful HDR and solid encoding"

Audio Notes:

Criterion 4K Blu-ray from nic: "4.0 audio is brilliantly detailed, rich and spacious without audible filtering or processing"

Director: John Huston

Best English-Friendly:

Indicator Blu-ray

Sources: caps-a-holic (opens in a new tab)

Best Video:

UK Indicator Blu-ray

Directors: Val Guest & Ken Hughes & John Huston & Joseph McGrath & Robert Parrish

Best English-Friendly:

MGM Blu-ray 

Best Video:

MGM Blu-ray despite dated master

Best Audio:

Sony Columbia 1994 LaserDisc Mono

Director: John Huston

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Director: John Huston

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

Director: John Huston

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Warner Archive Blu-ray

More from Olive Films

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Director: Alan J. Pakula

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Olive Films Blu-ray

Director: Frank Borzage

Video format: HD Streaming

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Amazon US HD Streaming

Sources: slow.pics (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

Amazon US HD Streaming is from the 2018 UCLA restoration. Olive Films Blu-ray is from an older scan and quite rough. caps

Best Audio:

Olive Films Blu-ray

Audio Notes:

Olive Films Blu-ray is again rough, with distortion, crackle and other issues, but sounds much more natural. With some EQ the restored track can be significantly improved

Director: Jean Renoir

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Olive Films Blu-ray

Director: William A. Seiter

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Olive Films Blu-ray

Director: Max Ophüls

Video format: UHD Blu-ray

Best English-Friendly:

2017 Olive Films Signature Blu-ray

Best Video:

The Jokers 4K Blu-ray

Video Notes:

(Jokers 4K Blu-ray has forced France subs)

The Jokers 4K Blu-ray has raised black levels/gamma issue, good when fixed

Best Audio:

1992 Republic Pictures LaserDisc

Director: Don Siegel

4K · Disappointing
Best English-Friendly & Video:

Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray or 2018 Olive Films/BFI or 2012 Olive Films/Italy Sinister Films Blu-ray

Sources: Criterion Forum (opens in a new tab)

Video Notes:

All three are not ideal.

All three are not ideal.

  • Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has frozen grain, sharpening, lots of debris, and handles lesser materials. The supposed non-Superscope version is false advertising. It merely reveals more picture information. 

Best Audio:

1992 Republic Pictures LaserDisc PCM Mono

Additional Info:

Criterion LaserDisc has exclusive commentary. Olive Films Signature Blu-ray and BFI Blu-ray each have exclusive extras. Kino Lorber 4K Blu-ray has exclusive commentary.

Director: Michael Gordon

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Olive Films OOP Blu-ray

Director: André de Toth

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Olive Films Blu-ray

Sources: cinema.ucla.edu (opens in a new tab)

Upcoming Release:

New UCLA restoration from Original Camera Negative

Director: Dave Fleischer

Best English-Friendly & Video:

Olive Films  Betty Boop: The Essential Collection: Volume 4 Blu-ray

Director: Ang Lee

Best English-Friendly:

US Olive Films Blu-ray or Australia Imprint Blu-ray?

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Researched and maintained by

vanshady

· last reviewed 1 year ago

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