Directed by:
Marko ŠkopScreenplay:
Marko ŠkopCinematography:
Ján MelišCast:
Milan Ondrík, František Beleš, Zuzana Konečná, Ľubomír Paulovič, Daniel Fischer, Csongor Kassai, Anikó Vargová, Ingrid Timková, Marek Geišberg, Andreas Nickl (more)Plots(1)
A Slovak village is getting ready for Christmas. Forty-year-old Milan travels from Germany where he works to be home with his family. However, the serene and festive atmosphere is unsettled by the suspicion that his son, a member of a paramilitary youth organisation, might be involved in a harrowing event that stunned the local community. This compelling drama, about the strength and fragility of family ties, examines our sense of moral responsibility in a world where xenophobia takes precedence over compassion for those closest to us. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)
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Reviews (5)
A decent chamber drama about a likable but religiously naïve family in a Slovak village. Remarkably fragile and socially intelligent in the family relationships. However, the story is not very distinctive, as it involves events that are ordinary (in the Slovak context) and by no means shocking. Milan Ondrík is excellent in the lead role. [3Kino Fest]
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"He who walks with a clear conscience is not harmed by thunder!" +++ I couldn't have expressed the message of Let There Be Light any better, I'm just a bit worried whether this mantra is still valid in the current strange times we are living in. For more perceptive viewers, perhaps this film, which is brilliantly handled in every respect, provides an answer to such considerations. I would like to point out that Marko Škop as both a writer and director is starting to interest me more and more, as his feature debut Eva Nová was very good. (90%)
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The Slovaks offered a movie which is an absolute, modern European drama with everything that it should have. It had a good family premise, took place in just the right kind of gloomy snow-covered countryside, and featured dense atmosphere and a camera which from time to time is at the top level. And it is not just a coincidence, Marko Škop already showed his capabilities in his debut Eva Nová. Moreover I have to say that Milan Ondrík is one of the top Slovakian actors and the others are almost at the same level as him. Let There Be Light was a great experience for me, as a high-quality drama, if perhaps a little unnecessarily cold. But still it was good enough to get under my skin.
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Marko Škop works well with the characters and the environment of a village where the people all know each other, but the same people also don’t like it when someone isn’t on the same wavelength as them. The film is drama about the need to confide and about a family dealing with the moral dilemma related to a tragedy that disrupted the Christmas calm in the village, and about the activities of a youth group that forms a militia. The film focuses on the themes of homophobia, father-son relationships and dishonest church dignitaries. However, the film takes its time getting the plot moving and has an open ending, where someone does the right thing, ensuring that things finally get going, but the film doesn’t end up showing them.
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The ambition to combine an intimate drama about a cold family with social commentary was too wide a dispersion and little emphasis on detail. The absent sound design or very fluctuating acting speak for themselves. It is, nevertheless, an important film that ends decently, as it leaves catharsis more or less up to the viewer. It is a pity that Škop is becoming more of a dramatizing director than a one who observes through a documentary. Thanks to this, Eva Nová was further and higher.
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