THE DARK VALLEY is a slow burning Austrian western set in an Alpine village in the late 19th century. The rugged Alpine scenery dominates the movie and becomes a character in itself, whether it's rain-sodden or icy cold when the snows finally hit. Inevitably this is a well-shot film with some fine cinematography although the colour palette didn't really need to be so subdued as it would have been better without that clichéd greyed-out look.
The story is similar to the supernaturally-tinged Clint Eastwood westerns of the 1970s and 1980s. A young photographer arrives in the village to stay the winter and make a basic living, but there's more to the story than meets the eye and before long the plot really kicks into motion. You see, this is a very typical revenge story that involves violence and retribution, particularly in the latter half.
Until that point there's a lot of scene-setting and character-building to get through. This is an extreme slow-burner and although all of the material is interesting, my interest did threaten to wane at points. Still, the denouement is worth the wait, packed with suspense and tension as it is, and the direction is very good. Realism is crucial here and carefully constructed. The Austrian cast is fine, and Sam Riley proves acceptable as the imported British lead; even his German language scenes sounded convincing, at least to this Brit reviewer.
The story is similar to the supernaturally-tinged Clint Eastwood westerns of the 1970s and 1980s. A young photographer arrives in the village to stay the winter and make a basic living, but there's more to the story than meets the eye and before long the plot really kicks into motion. You see, this is a very typical revenge story that involves violence and retribution, particularly in the latter half.
Until that point there's a lot of scene-setting and character-building to get through. This is an extreme slow-burner and although all of the material is interesting, my interest did threaten to wane at points. Still, the denouement is worth the wait, packed with suspense and tension as it is, and the direction is very good. Realism is crucial here and carefully constructed. The Austrian cast is fine, and Sam Riley proves acceptable as the imported British lead; even his German language scenes sounded convincing, at least to this Brit reviewer.