BLUE VALENTINE
CAROLINE: Blue Valentine is the much anticipated romantic drama starring Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling that has been getting buzz aplenty since Sundance almost a year ago. And we’ve been dying to see it ever since.
RYAN: All I could think while watching Michelle Williams give yet another great performance in this movie is that Katie Holmes is somewhere in a corner crying to herself and wanting to die.
CAROLINE: [laughs’ It is pretty amazing when you think back to Dawson’s Creek and how sort of chubby Michelle Williams was. We certainly never thought she’d be a gorgeous, Oscar nominated actress. She and Ryan Gosling are both amazing actors, but honestly, they’re the only reason this movie has any worth.
RYAN: It’s a good movie with a compelling and engaging story, but it’s also very sad and depressing to watch the deterioration of a marriage. I also wondered how much of it was improvised.
CAROLINE: I think a lot of it was. It had that very indie feel of “we’re just gonna let the cameras roll and see what happens,” and not always in a good way. I found the movie kind of plot-less. I kept waiting for something to actually happen, and after about a half an hour, I realized it wasn’t going to. It’s just a glimpse into a marriage that’s unraveling, with the occasional flashback to better times. I was like, “I guess I’m just supposed to watch this and be sad.”
RYAN: I couldn’t always tell what was a flashback and what wasn’t. There was nothing to indicate that we’d gone back in time or when we’d returned to the present. It was confusing.
CAROLINE: Well, Ryan’s hairline kept changing; I thought that made it pretty obvious. But you should definitely know going in that this movie has flashbacks because otherwise you’ll be very confused. Overall, I found this movie pretty self-indulgent, like it was more of an acting exercise than anything else.
RYAN: Totally. I was also hoping for more of an explanation as to why their marriage was falling apart. I found both characters equally hateful in different ways, but I wanted more reason for what was going on. I left the movie dissatisfied.
CAROLINE: The girl who plays the daughter is very cute, and there were definitely some scenes with really strong acting, but I didn’t react that emotionally to any of it. I expected to be weeping throughout, but I didn’t shed a tear once. I wasn’t that engaged and I didn’t really feel the characters’ pain. I just kept thinking how depressing it all was and that I really didn’t want to be watching a movie about this topic. It’s not fun.
RYAN: The much-hyped sex scenes are pretty intense. Lest we forget this movie was rated NC-17 until The Weinstein Company fought the MPAA and got it changed to an R rating.
CAROLINE: The sex scenes were pretty graphic but not so much so that it deserved an NC-17. I’m glad they were able to get that overturned. The sex was very real and not at all shot like movie sex usually is with gorgeous lighting, etc.
RYAN: I had a few moments where I was thinking, “God, are they actually doing it in this scene?” It looked very real.
CAROLINE: This a small, quirky movie by a first-time director who’s only done documentaries before this, and it’s actually shot like a doc in some ways. The whole movie has a very indie, low budget feeling, and it almost feels like you’re watching a real couple’s marriage dissolve. Personally, I don’t think that’s very fun.
— BOTTOM LINE —
RYAN: I liked this movie but didn’t love it. I watched it at home on a DVD screener and it’s definitely the kind of movie you can wait to rent. You don’t need to run to see it on the big screen unless these two are your favorite actors.
CAROLINE: I saw it on the big screen, which I’d agree isn’t necessary. I love these two stars and I was really looking forward to seeing this movie, but it disappointed me. It wasn’t what I expected and it wasn’t nearly as good as I expected. It was not compelling movie making. Good acting, but otherwise kind of pretentious. But worth seeing if you like Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, which you all should.
— RATING —
