Most external reviews I have read (including my most admired critics)see, quite astonishingly, to have misread this film. Here are the mostsignificant aspects not addressed. 1. she is pregnant when she marrieshim (deciding to have the child, not knowing exactly who the father isbut unable to go through with an abortion). Would she have married himotherwise? probably not. 2. The difference in education and even socialclass is not conducive to lifelong compatibility. He is a laborer(painter, mover) even if he can play the guitar. She is a nurse, whohad aspired to medical school. Even so, she has possibilities ofadvancement to a higher position (despite the fact that the doctor issort of making the moves on her). He is going nowhere, and what's more,has no interest in doing so. 3. Emotionally, he remains where he waswhen they started: fun, sex, and total devotion to her. but thatdevotion has a price: insecure in his own masculinity, he is quick toanger, possessive and demanding to 'own' her. He is soft, sentimental,a weeper, and does best with his 5 year old child. She lives in a morecomplex environment: her father, her job, her attractiveness to others.4. If the film has a major flaw, it is the fact that the relationshipfrom the start is that of the imbalance between lover (he) and beloved(she). It was never idyllic to begin with. This said, I found it asubtle, absorbing, and complex look at human relationships. And boththe cinematography (many close ups, interesting angles, use of blurredfigures in the background) and the music were original and compelling.No critic I read even mentioned the cinematic values; they were justconcerned with the PLOT.

If you go to this movie hoping to watch a chick flick, beware. Althoughit should be assumed from the trailer itself that this is a morerealistic look on love and marriage, I fear a lot of people will notunderstand nor appreciate the depth of what this movie has to over. Thespiraling love story between Dean and Cindy is a heart-wrenching taleand approaches the point of almost unbearable if you're a soft heartedperson. This movie takes to the dark side of love when it focuses onthe disintegrating marriage of Dean and Cindy and is a far cry from themovie "Revolutionary Road" and its depiction of marriage. The depth ofthe script, the actors' performances and the touchy subject matter allcreate what has become a sensational movie among the typical cinemadisappointments of today.

The film centers on a contempo married couple, charting their evolutionover a span of years by cross-cutting between time periods.

well Blue Valentine was outstanding. was looking forward to watch thismovie after hearing good reviews and all the film festival buzz aboutit. well the buzz was right. this movie was so scary in term of therealistic plot of it. frighteningly realistic, raw and sadly beautifulromance/drama, and also there performances were as raw as theircharacters. breakthrough realistic performances.

direction of this movie is well done, excellent. screenplay is good butcould have been slightly better. fresh and new story and idea. it takesa little time to develop but after that its very engaging and veryappealing. lovely movie. editing was very good. cinematography was goodtoo. performances wise its superb. Ryan Gosling's best performance tilldate after Half Nelson. he is adorable in this movie. he did that oldage performance so well. Michelle Williams as always did a fantasticjob. its not just her amazing beauty but her inner talent and GodGifted natural talent that you fall in love with her and the charactershe portrays. she is excellent.

the way their story is shown is pretty good and interesting. i mean theway their love life at span of time. the way they meet, they fall inlove, their own life hurdles, then they marry and their problems afterthat and eventually a very bitter and depressing ending. its a verybold and brave attempt, very emotional and painful to watch. i don'thave words to describe my feelings for it. one of the best movie ofthis year. an excellent attempt. powerful and unforgettable experience.MUST WATCH.

Greetings again from the darkness. OK, so I was extremely surprised tobe the only male in a theater with 30 plus viewers. I had not oncepreviously thought of this as a chick flick. In fact, it is quite aweighty relationship expose' and that explains the lack of present men.What is surprising is that while the film is about the ever-so-slowcrumbling of a marriage, there is no blame placed at the feet of anyone person, as is so often the case in Hollywood.

You might have already guessed that this is no upbeat, loosie-goosierom-com. Rather, it is a bleak look at a marriage that starts with goodintentions and fades into misery. On the plus, we witness an actingclinic by two of today's absolute best ... Ryan Gosling as Dean andMichelle Williams as Cindy. Dean is quite the oddball romantic as hestrums his ukulele and quivers "You Always Hurt the Ones You Love" in abit of foreshadowing. Cindy, on the other hand, is a bit more ambitiousand has dreams of medical school.

The two meet by happenstance in the hallway of a nursing home whenCindy is visiting her grandmother. Immediately, there are sparks andafter Cindy's macho boyfriend proves his true rotten self to her, shebecomes more enamored with Dean. When an unexpected pregnancy occurs,Dean is pretty quick to stand up for Cindy and they set off to build alife together.

Flash forward 6 years and Dean has changed very little, while Cindyjust seems totally beaten down. They both cherish their preciousdaughter Frankie (played by newcomer Faith Wladyka) but theirrelationship is nowhere, gone, kaput. Even an attempted one-nightgetaway to a themed hotel doesn't provide the relief they need.Instead, it's the final straw. When Cindy repeats "I'm done" ... wedon't doubt her at all.

Director and co-writer Derek Cianfrance does a tremendous job with thedetails and creating the personalities of these two people. Everyrelationship requires work and failure can be predicted when one givesup and the other pretends all is fine. This one probably won't save anymarriages, but it is worth seeing just to watch Ryan Gosling andMichelle Williams in action.

Derek Cianfrance's sophomoric feature explores the complex and oftenpainful relationship between Dean and Cindy (Ryan Gosling and MichelleWilliams) - a young couple in Brooklyn who meet, fall in love, getmarried, and then five years later fall apart.

It begins with their daughter, shouting for the missing family dog,something that seems to symbolize the loss of everything familiar andgood about their relationship. We meet these characters at a pointwhere things are beginning to crumble - Cindy works as a nurse, andseems to be the only adult in the house, as she is unable to the breakthrough the play-acting daddy-daughter dynamic that Dean has created,that is when he isn't off painting houses or getting drunk. Her senseof disillusionment and obligation is palpable.

Intimately shot with a gritty blue color palette and conspicuous focuspulls, this film is definitely from the same ilk as the leading duo'sother indie flicks Half-Nelson and Wendy and Lucy. The film has arather loose narrative, switching between the breakdown of the marriageand the first few weeks of their relationship, which is an effectivestorytelling decision. The shifts are easy to keep track of thanks toGosling's receding hairline and Williams putting on a few pounds - andthe pair have super chemistry that makes the sense of time feelauthentic.

After the dog is found dead, Dean suggests getting out of the house,getting drunk and making love. And so they check into the "Future room"of a sleazy themed sex motel, and a good portion of the film takesplace in this strange neon-soaked location. The two of them get busy inthe bedroom more often than perhaps is necessary to show - but whilethese depictions of sex do have a degree of realism you won't find inmost mainstream movies, there was nothing here to warrant the MPAA'sinitial kiss-of-death NC-17 rating.

After a rather muddled first act, the film does pick up - especiallywhen it explores the couple's first encounter. Dean gets a job at amoving company and sees Cindy across the hall in an old folks homewhere she's visiting her grandmother and he is moving a war veteran'sbelongings. The connection is instant and a tentative romance isformed. However, back in the present day the sense of disconnectbetween becomes more pronounced, and awkward confrontations soon arise.There is a visceral quality to these scenes, so well-acted and shot asto take on a voyeuristic dimension. But as the relationshipdisintegrates and the arguments become more intense, one wonders whatthe value of witnessing these painful exchanges really is.

Ryan Gosling performance is kind of a conundrum. I've never been thatimpressed with his acting but the merit of his work in this film isharder to judge due to the character itself being so grating. Dean isan extremely insecure man who makes a habit of being stubborn andobtuse, and his childish antics do become rather head-wrecking to watchafter a while.

He nails the character's defensive and destructive nature, but it's nota performance you can warm to - there are a few flickers of charm inthe early stages of his relationship with Cindy, however his irritatingsomewhat creeping nature does make you wonder why she would fall forhim in the first place. Gosling's mannerisms here are identical to mostother characters I've seen him play, ruminating with his hecticmasculine energy, there's more than a hint of self-consciousness aboutit.

On the other hand Michelle Williams is flat-out excellent as Cindy. Hergift for conveying raw emotions on screen is put to good use as shereveals the character's scars, her sense of sadness and ultimatelysuffocation. Late in the film there is a pivotal scene in which hercharacter makes a decision that will change course of her life, and thefear and release of that moment is truly affecting - her bestperformance yet.

For the most part, Blue Valentine is quite an unpleasant film, fixatedwith the misery of a relationship - with only a few fleeting moments ofbeauty or romance. As the conflict between them reaches fever pitchthere are a series of climactic scenes that will command your attention- but a little more of what they're fighting for might have made theexperience a richer one. Still, what the film says about who we chooseto love, and how we treat them when we do is powerful.

I went to see "Blue Valentine" based on some mostly positive reviews itreceived and this is a main reason why I don't trust professionalreviewers anymore.

"Blue Valentine" is done in the "mumblecore" style of film making. Thedialog appears to be improvised and the hand held camera makes it looklike a documentary. That in itself would not normally doom a film, butthe problem with "Blue Valentine" is that both characters are totallyunlikable and we never really care about them. Dean is an alcoholichigh school dropout and Cindy is a nurse who marries him because shecan't do any better.

The main problem with "Blue Valentine" is that it is extremely boring.It is like watching paint dry.

If you like watching depressing lowlifes mumbling for 2 hours, youmight like "Blue Valentine." Otherwise, be advised to stay away.