Portland Public Library

Let there be light, John Huston's wartime documentaries, presented in cooperation with the National Archives and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ; directed by John Huston

eng

videorecording

Let there be light

935519182

presented in cooperation with the National Archives and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ; directed by John Huston

281

John Huston's wartime documentaries

"Presented in cooperation with the National Archives and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, this collection features four documentaries directed by John Huston (The Maltese Falcon, The African Queen) as part of his service as an officer in the Army Signal Corps. The documentaries are not simple propaganda, but reflect Huston's own changing attitudes toward warWinning your wings (18:19 min): a recruitment film for the U.S. Army Air Forces, hosted by Jimmy StewartReport from the Aleutians (44:48 min): reveals the tedium of being stationed at a remote Army post in the islands of AlaskaSan Pietro (32:05 min): in this film, the tone of Huston's documentaries begin to take a dark turn, documenting an Italian military battle that cost an estimated 1,100 American lives, revealing, in unflinching detail, the retrieval and burial of casualties. The Army chose not to publicly screen the filmLet there be light (57:50 min): narrated by Walter Huston (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre), this film is considered to be one of the most important wartime documentaries ever made, depicting the treatment of "psychoneurotics" (now known as post-traumatic stress disorder), through hypnosis, drugs, and psychotherapyShades of gray (1:05.46): After the suppression of Let there be light, the US Army commissioned this dramatized remake of the film, which was produced without Huston's involvement,

live action

John Huston's wartime documentaries