I had a college professor tell me once that the things that we find the most personal are the things that we have the most in common. I have always remembered that because I have found it to be true. The things that are hard to share or talk about are the things that everyone has felt. Shame, humiliation, degradation, guilt, these are human feelings known all throughout the world.
Blue Valentine is the story of a couple whose marriage is falling apart. We see them at two stages in their life, falling in love and breaking up. Ryan Gosling (Half Nelson) plays a genial young man with very simple expectations. He loves music and would like to be a musician, but right now he is searching for a job, anything that will pay the rent. Dean ends up getting a job as a mover.
When we meet Cindy, Michelle Williams (Wendy and Lucy) she is in college and in a bad relationship. The bright spot in her life is spending time with her grandmother who has recently been sent to a nursing home. Dean has just moved an old veteran into that same nursing home and he spots Cindy in the hall. For him, it’s love at first sight. For Cindy, all men are trouble.
Cindy and Dean finally meet again and this time he persuades her to go for a walk. They fall in love and circumstances cause them to marry. In their marriage, Dean has found purpose; he lives to be a good husband and father. But Cindy is discontent. She had big dreams and settled for a baby and marriage. She starts tugging on the string of a loosely knit marriage and now it’s unraveling.
A personal film, Blue Valentine is done in such a naturalistic style that you feel like you are spying on a real, intimate relationship. Viewing things that should be private between a man and a woman leaves you with the feeling of being a voyeur. I don’t know if we are meant to take sides, but I certainly did. I also felt that this marriage could have been saved if both parties were willing to stick with their commitment. But these are the kinds of emotions that are dredged up when you see such a personal film. The movie is raw, real and a bit of a tragedy. A tragedy that happens every day.
Rating: First Run A film that shows the personal life between a man and a woman
About Me
- Melanie Wilson
- My Reviewer's Philosophy: I believe that every film has its audience. One man’s Citizen Kane is another man’s Texas Chain Saw Massacre. My purpose is to help you spend your entertainment dollars wisely. A bad review never kept me from going to a film I wanted to see, but a good review will sometimes get me to a film I never considered. As a movie lover I want you to go to the movies. When more people go to the movies, the more movies get made. But, I also believe that if you enjoy the films you see, you naturally will be inclined to go more often. So join me in supporting our film industry by going to a movie today. Hopefully I can steer you towards a good one. See you at the movies. Melanie Wilson
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