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Valley of Love

Released Mar 25, 2016 1h 32m Drama TRAILER for List
73% Tomatometer 56 Reviews 53% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
A man (Gérard Depardieu) and his ex-wife (Isabelle Huppert) reunite in Death Valley, Calif., after they both receive a letter from their dead son.
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Valley of Love

Valley of Love

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Critics Consensus

Powerful performances from Isabelle Huppert and Gérard Depardieu help Valley of Love compensate for the drift of a story that doesn't fully explore its intriguing themes.

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Critics Reviews

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Ed Potton Times (UK) It plays out like a Gallic version of The Trip, the sitcom starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, but with fewer gags. Rated: 3/5 Oct 10, 2016 Full Review Wendy Ide Observer (UK) The colour palette of bleached bone whites and brilliant blues, and the haunting music of Charles Ives add to the odd, mesmerising atmosphere. Rated: 4/5 Aug 14, 2016 Full Review David Jenkins Little White Lies Promises much, but ends up feeling strangely underpowered and insincere. Rated: 2/5 Aug 12, 2016 Full Review Vadim Rizov Filmmaker Magazine The movie builds to a surprisingly straightforward jab at the emotional solar plexus, which worked for me. Jan 18, 2023 Full Review Jane Freebury The Canberra Times (Australia) Valley of Love is a double treat. Aug 22, 2022 Full Review Lucía Ros Serra Espinof It tries to create a somewhat ghostly atmosphere that ends up not delving into the subject of loss and its confrontation. [Full Review in Spanish] May 14, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (8) audience reviews
Audience Member A clear example of nepotism at the Cannes Film Festival (it would have never competed if it were not French), and the beautiful cinematography and great actors cannot do much to save a terribly dull narrative that relies on such an awful amount of inelegant exposition. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Une performance impressionnante de Depardieu qui nous rappelle ainsi qu'il est toujours l'acteur audacieux et polyvalent parfaitement a l'aise chez Moliere, Blier, Duras, sur scene avec Barbara, à Hollywood ou plus recemment en Belgique dans Mammuth et Valley of Love. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Audience Member Almost an Huppert vs. Depardieu movie. It also happens to be a story about family, loss and love. It might lack some narrative depth but it still works as yet another example of the irresistible minimalism of French cinema. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Audience Member THE FRENCH ARE COMING, THE FRENCH ARE COMING: My take on the flims #Lolo, #ValleyofLove and #My Golden Days http://ow.ly/10jLjY Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Audience Member Kinda' like Jim Jarmusch and Wim Wenders collaborating to re-make the Parent Trap. Slow, subtitled and at times excrutiating, in so many ways... but overall I couldn't take my eyes off it. Even when my girlfriend begged me to leave because she was so bored after the first 20 minutes. Full of stylized french "meaning". Subtle, complex, nuanced, symbolic. Kinda' a puzzle that requires you to put the pieces together. The sort of movie audiences don't like but critics do. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member The desperate search for the lost child, and as a corollary, for love as well. The desert is hot and dry, vast and mountainous and the physicalities of Huppert, with her bitterness and flame-coloured looks, and Depardieu who is monumental, reflect it exactly. The desert echoes their profound loneliness. The film portrays the loss that happens now so easily In the age of blocking, deleting, unfriending and the like, and even the resort only to skype for contact. The acting performances are sans pareil; you find out how naturalistic they are, because of how uncomfortable you feel, even when they are being humorous, which is often enough. The fantastic landscapes and the oppressive atmosphere pose a constant menace. You are carried along and surprised when it ends. For adults only, this is an item of classic proportions. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Valley of Love

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Cast & Crew

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Movie Info

Synopsis A man (Gérard Depardieu) and his ex-wife (Isabelle Huppert) reunite in Death Valley, Calif., after they both receive a letter from their dead son.
Director
Guillaume Nicloux
Producer
Sylvie Pialat, Benoît Quainon
Screenwriter
Guillaume Nicloux
Distributor
Strand Releasing
Production Co
France 3 Cinéma, Les Films du Worso, Scope Pictures, LGM Productions, DD Productions
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Mar 25, 2016, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 14, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$28.3K
Runtime
1h 32m
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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