Valley of Shadows

This film blew my away. People don't understand metaphysical cinema. It's a transcendental masterpiece.

Incredibly boring film. How does a boat with no means of propulsion create a wake floating down a river? The woo is strong in this film. Also why does a little boy go around half naked in a freezing landscape?

The highest reviews seem to come from those knowledgeable in Class, Gothic Norwegian Horror. Coming from a more American horror officialdom, this held my attention to the very end. At which point I decided I'm not a fan of classic, gothic Norwegian blah blah. It's slow, which can be great, but it turns out not to be here. Has a good ending, at least from a child's perspective. Captures the lonely, cold feeling of the unexploited Northern European forests and community. Cinematoagraphy , sound music and acting all done well. The "boy" seems to be overly directed. We never see him break out of his cautious, quiet pace ...Ever! Not very 11 year-old-like. But maybe that's gothic for you.

It actually is more like who ... but let's not get ahead of ourselves. Not that the pacing of the movie would have you in that mood. So if you like fast paced told stories, you might want to look somewhere else. But if you are into stories told slowly and soaking in the mood and the ambient and everything else, this is exactly for you.

Now the fantasy (or fairy?) element of it all is there, but it is quite dark. And while not every question will be answered (remember that and don't blame the movie for it), you will have a lot of tension and a kid that has to physically cross to the other side (analogies and all) - what will he find and will we be able to make sense of it? Well that is for you to discover and to draw your own conclusions ...

A slowly unfolding gothic mood piece about a young rural boy trying to come to grips with the disappearance of his older brother, his mother's despair & struggles, and a series of savage sheep maulings in his farming community. Low on dialogue, but full of mist, towering environmental symbols, mystery and omens, this quietly moving examination of childhood confusion and grief might have been more bluntly entitled, "Is My Brother a Werewolf?"!