Interview with Michelle Williams

Michelle Williams talks about making Blue Valentine & why Ryan Gosling is 'an uncommon man':




& a short clip with Williams & Gosling explaining Derek Cianfrance's directing strategies - interesting:

Blue Valentine - Review

I saw Derek Cianfrance's Blue Valentine a few weeks ago, and had so much to say about it, but it took my a while to get around to finishing my review.  

Before getting into the heavy stuff, the film is, aesthetically, beautiful. Andrij Parekh's loose camera work is gorgeous and draws you into the chaos and intimacy of Dean & Cindy's marriage.

Director Derek Cianfrance wanted Brooklyn band Grizzly Bear to write a score for his film. 


Scheduling problems ruled that out, but Grizzly Bear did the next best thing & handed him their entire catalogue of music to use as he pleased. As a result, the bulk of the film is still underscored by the indie cool of the Brooklyn music scene. 


These stylistic touches contribute to the swooning beauty of the outsider love story and help make the heavier parts easier to swallow.  

As for the heavy stuff, there's plenty of it. Without divulging too much plot, Blue Valentine looks at two pivotal moments in a young marriage - when it began, and when it is in danger of falling apart.

How it begins is an intense swirl of indie cool and bruised adolescence where two damaged people find each other and - under less than ideal circumstances - decide to stick together. How it falls apart is like Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf with indie kids - no big infidelities or secrets, just the small frustrations that become overwhelming. Heartbreaking stuff.  


It's not an easy film to watch - it is raw, unflinchingly honest and refuses to choose sides. Both characters wear their pain on their sleeves and what initially brought them together threatens to tear them apart when they are unable to put it aside for the sake of their marriage. The joy is mapped out in as much complex detail as the misery. 


Much has been made of the film's sex scenes, but Ryan Gosling & Michelle Williams give performances so real & vulnerable, it feels like they are holding their souls up for scrutiny. In that context, there is nothing in the sex scenes that is any more revealing or uncomfortable to watch than in their fully-clothed conversations. Additionally, as in any marriage, the dynamics of the sex scenes are pivotal to revealing their state of intimacy, and, though uncomfortably real, the scenes are certainly not intended to be gratuitously erotic.     


It is a testament to the actors' commitment to their characters that their turmoil is so riveting to watch - these two lost souls feel so real, and their frustrations so palpable, you desperately want to pull them aside and talk them through it.

Blue Valentine is probably best viewed as a cautionary tale about letting your emotions get the better of you. By allowing us to see what their marriage becomes, and also how it started, we are able to see the seeds of what comes between them in the end - whether it's Cindy's fragile & withdrawn nature, or Dean's volatile bullheadedness, what was sweet & charming to them at the start becomes unbearable when they can't get past their own insecurities to be good to each other.

The heartbreak of the film is to learn to face up to the small things in each of our lives that can get the better of us, if we let them, and push away the people and things we love and need the most. 


One of the best written and best acted films of the year. 

Grizzly Bear - Easier, featured in Blue Valentine.

& Penny & the Quarters - You & Me - Dean & Cindy's song:

Oscar Casualties - Best Picture

One of the reasons why I started following the Oscar race is because I was always fascinated by the films and performances that were in the running, but just missed the cut. 

With the final 5 (or 10 for Best Picture, these days) often being determined by fairly random or unpredictable factors – box office, popularity, topicality, timing, serendipity – there are usually a handful of deserving shut outs that there simply was not space for - often just as good or better. These are the forgotten gems of the Oscar race, and they're often more fun to dig out. 

So here are the more significant casualties of this year's Oscar race, as I see them:

Best Picture:

With 10 slots for Best Picture, there aren't really too many movies that could realistically have been nominees but didn’t make it. In a way, it makes the race more satisfying, in another way it is less dramatic (no big Into the Wild-style shut outs). Many argue that 10 nominees is less prestigious, and they may have a point, but I would argue that it gives a better, more well-rounded view of the specific year in film. By being able to cater for more tastes and styles, they create a better snapshot of the year, and become more relevant, if slightly less prestigious.

This year’s list is pretty great & diverse, with indie favourites (Winter’s Bone, The Kids Are All Right), art-house hits (Black Swan), Box Office brilliance (Inception, Toy Story 3) & just plain solid (True Grit, The Fighter, The King’s Speech) and topical (The Social Network) dramas. I’m not sure exactly where 127 Hours fits in – probably a little bit of all of the above.

For the coulda-been-contenders, go ahead & click :

Blue Valentine Trailer

Sigh. Awesome.

Oscar contenders - Best Actress: Michelle Williams

Originally posted: 8 Jan 2011

Michelle Williams has come a long way since the Creek. She's built her reputation slowly with strong supporting roles in small indies like The Station Agent, Prozac Nation, Imaginary Heroes & scored an Oscar nomination for playing the betrayed wife of real-life partner Heath Ledger in Brokeback Mountain.

Since her Oscar nomination, she has been reliably brilliant, pouring intensity & focus into every small role she’s played. She has pretty much entirely avoided big Hollywood & focused on interesting indies, culminating  in her critical breakthrough in the intimate & highly celebrated Wendy & Lucy. As indie & artsy as they come, she had no shot at major award nominations, but was still considered to be in the running.

This year she was memorable as one of Leonardo’s DiCaprio’s set of crazy dead wives in Martin Scorsese’s Shutter Island, and teamed up again with Wendy & Lucy director Kelly Reichardt’s feminist western, Meek's Cutoff. Both roles brought in the acclaim, but none as rich & adoring as her work in Derek Cianfrance’s Blue Valentine. 

Years in the making, and a labour of love for writer / director Derek Cianfrance, critics have praised Blue Valentine for its uncompromising authenticity & have raved Williams and co-star Ryan Gosling's portrayal of a young couple trying to salvage their marriage. The film’s indie pedigree & challenging subject matter is the only thing putting a question mark over their chances of being sure-bet nominees.

The whole NC-17 rating debacle (the film was initially classified as erotica, before the Weinsteins made a convincing appeal plea to the MPAA, and had the rating overturned) actually gave the film some much-needed publicity, and the critics awards clearly declared their love in the various Critic Circle nominations. The Golden Globes gave them a welcome mainstream boost, but the Screen Actors Guild gave them a skip (in favour of freaking Hilary Swank & - more understandably - Robert DuVall).

Broader Academy recognition could help the actors along. With 10 slots, it is not unthinkable that Blue 

Valentine, one of the year’s most acclaimed, but depressing, films, could land a slot. More likely, however, it will be a strong contender for Original Screenplay.

I have yet to see the film, but I think so highly of both actors and their considerable commitment to their craft, that they are right on top of my Oscar wishlist.

Wendy & Lucy:

Meek's Cutoff: