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Edvin Laine, arguably Finland's most prolific postwar filmmaker, both directed and starred in Kultainen Kynttilanjalka. The title translates to Golden Light, a symbolic cognomen referring to the "ray of hope" afforded the downtrodden of the world. Set amongst a group of criminals, the plot eschews violence and sordidness in favor of a sentimental account of redemption. Some critics in 1947, unimpressed by director Laine's track record, dismissed the film as "poor" and "inept," which by Hollywood standards it may well have been. Still, it did well in Finland and the rest of the Scandinavian countries.