Blue Valentine (2010)

The relationship of a contemporary married couple, charting their evolution over a span of years by cross-cutting between time periods.

Director:

Derek Cianfrance

Writers:

Derek Cianfrance, Joey Curtis

Stars:

Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams, John Doman

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 55 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ryan Gosling	...	Dean
Michelle Williams	...	Cindy
Faith Wladyka	...	Frankie
John Doman	...	Jerry
Mike Vogel	...	Bobby
Marshall Johnson	...	Marshall
Jen Jones	...	Gramma
Maryann Plunkett	...	Glenda
James Benatti	...	Jamie
Barbara Troy	...	Jo
Carey Westbrook	...	Charley
Ben Shenkman	...	Dr. Feinberg
Eileen Rosen	...	Mimi
Enid Graham	...	Professor
Ashley Gurnari	...	Checker

Storyline

Dean Pereira and Cindy Heller Pereira are a young, working class married couple - Dean currently working as a painter, and Cindy working as a nurse in a medical clinic - with a young daughter named Frankie. Despite their relatively tender ages, they are both ravaged by the life they've eked out together and by the experiences they've had leading into their marriage. Dean, a high school drop out, comes from a broken home, where he never really had a mother figure. He never saw himself getting married or having a family despite falling in love at first sight with Cindy. He doesn't have any professional ambition beyond his current work - which he enjoys since he feels he can knock off a beer at 8 o'clock in the morning without it affecting his work - although Cindy believes he has so much more potential in life. Cindy also comes from a dysfunctional family, with her own mother and father not setting an example of a harmonious married or family life. One of her previous serious ...

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Plot Keywords:

dysfunctional family | falling in love | unhappily married woman | unplanned pregnancy | marriage | 

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Taglines:

A Love Story.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R on appeal for strong graphic sexual content, language, and a beating

Did You Know?

Trivia

The scenes in the "past" when Dean and Cindy are falling in love were shot first, in three weeks. After this, Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams spent a month together in a rented house to age themselves in preparation for the "present" scenes. They spent a lot of their time grocery shopping, cooking dinner and learning to pick fights with each other.

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Goofs

During a 'past' flashback when Dean and Cindy are outside the Boutique store, the camera focuses and moves with Cindy, while that's happening, a car drives by and being a night scene, the headlights from the car briefly illuminates both Cindy and the Cameraman's shadow on the background wall. (at around 54 mins)

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Quotes

Dean: Tell me how I should be. Just tell me. I'll do it.

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Crazy Credits

The initial credits, showing major cast and crew, play over a montage of stills from the film and clips of fireworks.

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Connections

Featured in MsMojo: Top 10 Most Realistic Romance Movies (2018)

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Soundtracks

The Yankee Doodle Boy
(uncredited)
Written by George M. Cohan
Performed by Children at the recital

User Reviews

No More "Happily Ever After"

With the growing number of divorce in America, the "happily ever after" shown in Hollywood films are now far-fetched dreams and no longer a reality. Blue Valentine chooses instead to give its viewers a story of unrestrained truth. This film gives us a raw and painful account of a married couple that was once deep in romance and drama but over time had grown apart. Reality stripped them of the passion they once felt toward one another. The film jumps back and forth between the story of how they met and the current turmoil they are in now. Director Derek Cianfrance does an exceptional job of bringing to the screen the gritty and messiness of a failed marriage. Cianfrance definitely understands the searing pain of a couple that has to call it quits not due to abuse or infidelity but simply because they cannot return to the love they once had. Blue Valentine makes the viewer uncomfortable because it is strikingly identifiable. Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams were amazing together; they successfully capture in every scene the multiple layers and the complexity of a relationship. They feed off of one another on screen and their chemistry is authentic, so much so, that it is often times difficult to swallow. The director's choice to have the two actors live together off screen paid off on camera. Blue Valentine is profound, intense and real. It is definitely a "must-see".

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Australia]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 January 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Blue Valentine

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$193,728, 2 January 2011

Gross USA:

$9,706,328

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$15,440,333

Company Credits

Production Co:

Incentive Filmed Entertainment, Silverwood Films, Hunting Lane Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1