Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageThe Valley (1969)
Director: Tamás Rényi
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
An arresting, ambitious anti-war drama, shot in widescreen and stunning black-and-white, about a group of army deserters (from an unspecified conflict) who seek refuge in a remote village populated entirely by women and girls (their menfolk are presumably in war service). The women are persuaded to let them stay, an act that carries a severe penalty... The film is as interested in sexual politics and the survival of traditional (and repressive) social forms as it is in its overall pacifist thrust, and sets up a series of remarkable tableaux (the envious, hardened faces of the black-clad elders) and formal, almost ritualist, set pieces (a sexually frenzied dance between one of the deserters and the virgin white-dressed girls, for instance). There is a pained, poetic quality to the film and its imagery that produces a strong pull on the imagination, but the (deliberate) omission of specific references (what is the film-maker saying, if anything, about the Hungary of 1969?) leads to a slightly disconcerting obscurity.Author: WH
Cast & crew
Director: Tamás Rényi
Cast: Gábor Koncz, István Avar, Tibor Molnár, György Bardi, János Koltai full cast
Genre(s): War
Duration: 76 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Time Out's 101 Films of the Decade
Ten years, thousands of movies and millions of dollars in international box office, and it all boils down to this
Martin Provost discusses 'Séraphine'
Trevor Johnston talks to the director of 'Séraphine' about bringing a little known French painter back to life
Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson ends a triumphant decade with a sentimental misfire with this lush Alice Sebold adaptation
On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'
Dave Calhoun meets Ken Loach on the set of his forthcoming Iraq war movie
Stephen Poliakoff discusses 'Glorious 39'
Stephen Poliakoff’s ‘Glorious 39’ is his first film for cinema since ‘Food of Love’ in 1997. Dave Calhoun met him
Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?
How does a film go from DIY experiment to box-office smash? 'Paranormal Activity' director Oren Peli explains
Steven Soderbergh on 'The Informant!' and 'The Girlfriend Experience'
We talk to Steven Soderbergh about his two forthcoming films: one featuring a porn star, the other a chubby Matt Damon
A gateway to all things 'New Moon'
In anticipation of 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon', Time Out is offering the chance to pick up a limited edition pack with three exclusive magazines and a free poster.
The films that deserve a TV spin-off
With Roland Emmerich suggesting he'd like to make a '2012' TV spin-off, we propose some more movie-to-TV serialisations
Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam
In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations
What do you think?
Post your review now