Blue Valentine is a well directed and well acted film starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams(wife of the late Heath Ledger). It is said that the two actors improvised often on set. The thing that I found amazing was its been reported that director Derek Cianfrance hardly ever had more than one take on any given shot. Not only is it difficult as a filmmaker to be able to get perfect shots in one go, but it's incredibly difficult to make such a gripping film based on those shots. Sometimes the worst thing that can happen to a filmmaker is not getting enough coverage. Making such a film on limited coverage is almost as uncommon as non-yellow taxis.
Blue Valentine is told from two distinct timelines. One is from Dean(Gosling) and Cynthia(Williams) perspective before they were married. The other timeline takes place during their troubled six year marriage. The two time periods are cut between one another. Initially one might have a hard time distinguishing the two, other than the obvious age difference between the two actors(thanks to the help of great make-up). The other difference is the past is shot with 16mm film and the present is shot digitally.
Blue Valentine establishes the troubled marriage from the get go. While leaving one morning to work, Dean tells Cynthia to put her seat belt on, but Cynthia obnoxiously refuses to do so. The family dog also goes missing. The couple has a six year old child named Frankie. Dean and Frankie have a very strong relationship together. Dean enjoys acting like a six year old with her. Cynthia doesn't seem all that impressed with Dean's behavior, but Dean simply thinks he's being a good father.
The intercutting between the past and the present helps to better establish both characters. The cuts always seem to happen at just the right moments. For example when Cynthia meets Bobby in the grocery store, after years of not seeing him, it is apparent she has feelings toward the man. As the film plays out we find out, through a flashback, that Bobby and Cindy dated in high school. When she informs Dean she saw Bobby he clearly gets aggravated, but we don't know why. As the story further progresses, there is again another flashback where we actually are revealed that Bobby impregnated Cynthia with Frankie. Cianfrance reveals this just as the couple seemed to be at their most distant.
There was only one element that truly bothered me about this film. You could say it's the films major fault. Dean is clearly a loving husband and more importantly a loving father. After all that Dean has gone through with Cynthia, it just seems odd that Cynthia would simply get angry enough by simply seeing Bobby to want to leave Dean. Cynthia may be having an outside relationship with her boss, maybe not sexually but is clear something is fishy. Dean seems to know this but accepts it. The film doesn't make it seem like Dean truly did anything to deserve Cynthia's punishment at the end. It is apparent that he drinks frequently and works at a job that is not equal to his wife's in terms of pay, but he tells her he doesn't care about going anywhere in life since his wife and daughter are all he lives for. Goslings performance is so authentic that I believe Dean when he says this. In an age where loyalty seems to be portrayed in the media as deteriorating, it struck me as odd she would just be angry with him because he hasn't changed from the man she met six years prior. Blue Valentine doesn't establish the couples marriage problems. I felt in most circumstances throughout the film Cynthia was just overreacting. Maybe as a male viewer I simply do not understand the female psyche. Or maybe I am just as immature as Dean is, and share his beliefs. Maybe Cynthia wanted more out of Dean's relationship and she's not getting it. Not only does she view Bobby as a somewhat successful man but when she looks at her boss, another somewhat successful man, the combination must trigger something in Cynthia's head that makes Dean look like a bad person. Again in this day and age money shouldn't be everything but it sadly is. Dean's desire to be a good husband as well as a good father must be viewed as truly bad since he does not wish to propel himself in life. But maybe it is the simple fact that Dean doesn't try to be more than who he is, and that is what truly aches at Cynthia.
Overall the Blue Valentine's excellent acting truly sell the story being told. It's this aspect that makes Blue Valentine a movie worth watching.
Note: Blue Valentine was originally rated NC-17. It is beyond me as to why. It was said to be because of an oral sex scene. So let me get this straight, females are allowed to perform oral sex on males in an R-rated films but not the other way around? In neither case do you actually see the act, but apparently it's worse if females receive then give it out. Well, that's the MPAA for you.
4/4 Muffins
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