1507 - Blue Valentine

 This was one of those films that I'd heard nothing about and then all of a sudden everyone started raving about it.  It's a film that's hard to describe.  I suppose the easiest would be to say that it's a tad nihilistic in the sense that, from my perspective, it's a film that's about how we always hurt those we love the most.  Or maybe it's just about the transient nature of love.  How we can only love people for as long as we can love them, and then that love runs out, or fades, or whatever.  People change.  The film takes place in two timelines, in one we watch them fall in love, in the other we watch them fall out - or to be more specific - we see their final 24hrs as a couple.  In truth, I think I would have liked to see a little bit more of the downfall of the marriage.  We get enough glimpses that it's more than enough, but - I don't know - perhaps they left me wanting more, and maybe that's just a good thing.
Gosling and Williams are amazing here.  And I don't say that lightly.  When they're falling in love they make you feel warm, tingly, full of hope, but when they're being horrible to each other you feel dirty, anxious.  This is no small feat in being able to make us love and kind-of-hate them and have that go back and forth at such a regular pace. 
It you're up for a film about a brutally realistic relationship than this is probably your cup of tea - but keep in mind that it's no date movie.  In fact a film like this would probably start a really interesting conversation from people in a relationship. 
Simple, elegant writing, brilliant performances, and a nice raw feel to it.  This is easily one of the best films of the year.
Blue Valentine  Blue Valentine [Blu-ray]