30 Day Movie Challenge: Day 14- Blue Valentine (2010)

Today was the day I dreaded the most when I created this version of the 30 Day Movie Challenge. There have been a few occasions in my life when I had gone into a theater to watch a chick flick which is usually a film that is all about love and romance and it appeals to younger audiences who still want to believe in a prince charming. So the task for today and I'm glad it's the only one was to watch a chick flick and the film that I chose was 2010's Blue Valentine (I checked and it said it was) which was written and directed by Derek Cianfrance (The Place Beyond the Pines). The film stars Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) and Ryan Gosling (Lars And The Real Girl) as married couple Dean and Cindy who have been recently having a rough time. The couple decides to take a weekend away and that is where we see the evolution of this relationship as it cuts back and forth between the past and present. The film also stars Faith Wladyka in her first role as Frankie, John Doman (You Were Never Really Here) as Jerry, Mike Vogel (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) as Bobby, Jen Jones (Winter of Frozen Dreams) as Gramma, Maryann Plunkett (The Squid And The Whale) as Glenda, Ben Shenkman (Just Like Heaven) as Dr. Feinberg, Eileen Rosen (Baby Frankenstein) as Mimi, and Carey Westbrook (Starngeland) as Charley.

It was definitely an interesting way to structure the film as we see this couple begin to fall apart all because Michelle Williams runs into an old flame of hers from college. That was the cataclysmic event that moved the wheel forward as Gosling who they made balding when he was the older self struggle to connect with his wife and it gets awkward. It's definitely reality though because not everything in life is always going to be roses which is what I think a lot of people forget when they decide to get married. So, we are treated to the sweet and passionate days of when Ryan was courting her and while there are some hiccups there, he sticks by her side through the thick and the thin. The one thing I am going to really give this film credit for of course is the acting because Gosling and Williams were absolutely amazing in the film. If it wasn't for their acting, I don't think I would have enjoyed the film at all if I am being honest. One question that never gets answered in the film is whether or not Frankie is Ryan Gosling's kid or if it's the previous boyfriends? They never address it after they initially tells us and I am like why bring it up if you'll never answer it for us. There is nothing more annoying to me then that, but in the end it was a decent film. That is why I am going to give the film an B+ for a final grade because if it wasn't for Gosling and Williams this would be a B-.