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Blue Valentine

Play trailer 1:45 Poster for Blue Valentine R Released Dec 29, 2010 2h 0m Drama Romance Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
87% Tomatometer 211 Reviews 77% Popcornmeter 50,000+ Ratings
Dean (Ryan Gosling) and Cindy (Michelle Williams) live a quiet life in a modest neighborhood. To the casual observer, everything appears normal, if a bit subdued. But a closer examination reveals a couple caught in a downward spiral. They appear to have the world at their feet at the outset of the relationship. However, his lack of ambition and her retreat into self-absorption cause potentially irreversible cracks in their marriage.
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Blue Valentine

Blue Valentine

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Critics Consensus

This emotionally gripping examination of a marriage on the rocks isn't always easy to watch, but Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling give performances of unusual depth and power.

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Critics Reviews

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David Ansen Newsweek See it for [Ryan] Gosling and [Michelle] Williams, but be advised: if you take a date, you'll be sorry. Feb 6, 2018 Full Review Candice Frederick Reel Talk Online Williams's beautiful performance is played nicely off Gosling's remarkably vulnerable performance yielding a timeless portrayal of love, romance, agony and despair. Rated: A+ Sep 9, 2017 Full Review Laura Kern Film Comment Magazine Unlike Bergman's searing Scenes from a Marriage, which sustains itself for every one of its 299 devastating minutes, Blue Valentine begins to falter somewhere during its 114. Jun 20, 2013 Full Review Nadia Dalimonte Next Best Picture The concept of a troubled marriage might be familiar grounds, but the intimate storytelling of “Blue Valentine” feels personal to Cianfrance’s filmmaking style. Rated: 9/10 May 9, 2024 Full Review Michael Leader Den of Geek Blue Valentine gently invites the viewer into their lives. Rated: 4/5 May 7, 2024 Full Review Don Shanahan Every Movie Has a Lesson The story of Blue Valentine is fascinating, but a tough and tragic one to watch, nonetheless. It doesn't shy away from the depression, tension, and stress, anymore than it does the passion and attaction. Rated: 4/5 Feb 16, 2024 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Jakob F A cataclysmic portrayal of love lost and found, this nonlinear escapade into the lives of two idiosyncratic young adults finding themselves and each other juxtaposes the peak and pit of their relationship and connects all the dots in between, ultimately serving as both a nostalgic celebration and tragic funeral dirge, forming the foundation for my understanding of what love is. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/24/24 Full Review Dave S In Blue Valentine, Cindy (Michelle Williams) and Dean (Ryan Gosling), married young due to an unplanned pregnancy, struggle to hold together a disintegrating marriage. Cindy, raised in a home torn by volatile parents, seeks comfort in the arms of anyone who will hold her. Dean, a high school dropout content with work as a low-paid unskilled worker, fuels himself with alcohol. The film does an excellent job in honing in on the considerable shortcomings of the two main characters, alternating equally between the present-day horrors of their marriage and the somewhat less troubled early days of their relationship. Thanks to some extremely effective handheld camerawork and fantastic performances from both Williams and Gosling, Blue Valentine is a gut-wrenching slice of life, never easy to watch but impossible to look away from. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 11/05/24 Full Review Audience Member I could rewatch this movie forever. It’s the most honest depiction I’ve seen in film of how relationships can’t always be reconciled, even if there was a time when they felt perfect. Michelle Williams gives a beautiful portrayal of a woman who’s hoped for a lot and been disappointed. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/05/24 Full Review Audience Member A movie that focuses on the downward spiral of a couple largely caused by disillusionment and incompatibility. An eye-opening, memorable, albeit slightly depressing, watch. Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling played their characters very well and believably. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/28/24 Full Review Michael V A Love Story. Blue Valentine is a 2010 American romantic drama film written and directed by Derek Cianfrance 💙 Not bad, but not my favourite either 😐 Meh, it passed the time. Just. 😐 👍🏼👎🏼 Dean and Cindy live a quiet life in a modest neighbourhood. They appear to have the world at their feet at the outset of the relationship. However, his lack of ambition and her retreat into self-absorption cause potentially irreversible cracks in their marriage. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 07/22/24 Full Review Jeremy K This is a simply brilliant film that explores the nuances and pain of a disintegrating - yet loving - relationship with unbearable and unswerving honesty. Gosling and Williams are both superb, as is Faith Wladyka as their little girl. I haven't seen anything with this much pathos since Paris, Texas - and that was 40 years ago. An amazing achievement - it made believe again in the emotional power of cinema. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/14/24 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis Dean (Ryan Gosling) and Cindy (Michelle Williams) live a quiet life in a modest neighborhood. To the casual observer, everything appears normal, if a bit subdued. But a closer examination reveals a couple caught in a downward spiral. They appear to have the world at their feet at the outset of the relationship. However, his lack of ambition and her retreat into self-absorption cause potentially irreversible cracks in their marriage.
Director
Derek Cianfrance
Producer
Lynette Howell Taylor, Alex Orlovsky, Jamie Patricof
Screenwriter
Derek Cianfrance, Joey Curtis, Cami Delavigne
Distributor
Weinstein Co.
Production Co
Silverwood Films, Hunting Lane
Rating
R (Language|A Beating|Strong Graphic Sexual Content)
Genre
Drama, Romance
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 29, 2010, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 1, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA)
$9.7M
Runtime
2h 0m
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