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Edward Norton, David Morse, Evan Rachel Wood, Rory Culkin, John Diehl ... see more see more... , Bruce Dern , Geoffrey Lewis , Muse Watson , Kat Dennings , Aaron Fors , Hunter Parrish , Aviva , Heather Ashleigh , Artel Kayaru , Christina Cabot , Ellen Burstyn , Elizabeth Peņa

A romance between a teenage girl and a thirtysomething drifter takes the young woman down a dangerous and unexpected path in this independent drama. Tobe (Evan Rachel Wood) is a pretty 18-year-old who... read more read more...se father, Wade (David Morse), is the sheriff of a town in California's San Fernando Valley. Tobe is driving to the beach with some friends when she stops at a filling station and meets gas jockey Harlan (Edward Norton), who dresses like a cowpoke and claims to have recently relocated to Los Angeles from South Dakota. Harlan is immediately and obviously taken with Tobe, and when she asks him to tag along for the day, he impulsively quits his job to follow her. Tobe and Harlan soon become a couple, but Wade is convinced Harlan is not all he claims to be, and Tobe begins to wonder if her father might be right when Harlan takes her horseback riding and their date is cut short after police inform them the horses have been stolen from an rancher (Bruce Dern) whom Harlan claims is a friend - and who promptly turns up with a gun to confront both of them, insisting that he has never seen Harlan before. Tobe's suspicions grow when Harlan offers to teach her little brother, Lonnie (Rory Culkin), how to shoot using a pair of real .45 revolvers, as his actions become less charming and more worrisome. Leading man Edward Norton also served as producer on this project. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Flixster Users

46% liked it

39,090 ratings

Critics

51% liked it

101 critics

R, 2 hr. 5 min.

Directed by: David Jacobson

Release Date: June 16, 2005

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DVD Release Date: September 26, 2006

Stats: 1,449 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,449)

  • jlewis07
    January 15, 2010
    jlewis07
    Down in the Valley is a bit of a jumble, switching tones and genres quickly from the first to second half, but I'm still glad I watched it. The performances by all of the main actors, especially Norton, are pitch perfect and make this movie better than it probably is. The first h... read morealf is the good half, building up a sweet romance that is quiet and touching, but the second half has tons of implausible moments that make this otherwise great movie a little hard to swallow. I wish the screenplay was better than it is, but it is still worth a rental based on everything else.
  • matertenebraum
    October 29, 2009
    matertenebraum
    Down in The Valley What a great film...very layered and subtle. It is beautifully shot and the four main characters are original and yet painfully familiar in their alienation, anger, and despair. The Cowboy character played by Edward Norton (who is amazing) seems so simple at fi... read morerst but as he is drawn into the family his character and the truth unravels in ways that left me at a stand still near the end of the film. The character played by Rory Culkin, "Twig", says very little throughout the film and yet he conveys a sense of yearning and loneliness almost too painful to bare. But even he undergoes an unexpected transformation by the end of the film. The lead is a beautiful creature on the screen. Her relationship with the Cowboy seemed unlikely at first and then became completely believable, especially in the bathtub scene. This is a film for lovers of independent film and psychological kinds of cinema. There are also several scenes that border on surrealism. This film will leave you thinking and wondering about your life
  • SirPant
    October 1, 2009
    SirPant
    Destined to be a classic, this is my kind of film! Norton is brilliant in this modern day western. Highly Recommended!
  • MovieGeek13
    March 19, 2009
    MovieGeek13
    It's all over the place. The filmmaking is unfocused and too in love with itself to care about the real story behind it all. The acting isn't all that convincing either.
  • CrookedlittleB33
    July 22, 2008
    CrookedlittleB33
    Intriguing, endearing, quirky....and also quite yummy.

    Photobucke... read moret">
  • yona71
    July 12, 2008
    yona71
    Yet another brilliant performance by Edward Norton.
    He portrays an innocent young man who believes he's a cowboy in the San Fernando valley. He's brought out of his low key existence by a rebellious teenage girl who just causes him problems. Norton's character, Harlan is filled ... read morewith love and lives in his own little world of his choice.
    A good look at how so many fail to see what's important in life, and how we should respect our fellow man.
  • 76Majikat
    April 4, 2008
    76Majikat
    Not a film I had heard of previously, but one with a good storyline. It lures you into a false sense of security and then a much deeper side to the film emerges. The dvd cover says "Reminders of 1970's aces Taxi Driver and Badlands" and I see hints of both as possible influence... read mores, but the film it reminded me of was 'Fear' with Mark Wahlberg, only a much better version.

    I think the beauty of this film is that most will be able to relate to at least one of the characters. My only complaint would be that the ending seemed a little stretched out.
  • ceWEBrity
    March 28, 2008
    ceWEBrity
    I'm having trouble thinking of anything I want to say about this movie. I'll give it a shot tomorrow.

    TOMORROW: ...Nope. Still nothing. The movie was more interesting than this - why can't I formulate anything to say about it? I guess Edward Norton is pretty damn good as always ... read morebut why are his characters always so violent? Also, I didn't know Evan Rachel Wood could act. I thought she was just kind of floating around Hollywood, being pretty.

    Shady ending - especially the last minute or so. As everyone has said, it starts off stronger than it finishes. Norton really sells that love junk in the first act; it's treacle so thick that it could only come from a knight of the Ol' West, and the fact that he can make it work says something about his performance on several levels. You'd know what I mean if you saw it.

    I think we need more movies like this - interesting genre-bending explorations of mental illness - but it would help if they were better.
  • SilentWarProductions2009
    November 23, 2007
    SilentWarProductions2009
    Directed by: David Jacobson.
    Starring: Edward Norton, Evan Rachel Wood, David Morse, Rory Culkin.

    It happens all the time, you get a film that has a quality in its first and second acts and then something throws it off in the third....Down in the Vall... read moreey is no exception.

    The story is set in modern day San Fernando Valley in LA, a young girl named Tobe (short for October) takes a trip to the beach with her friends and stops off at the local gas station, only to meet an out-of-place cowboy named Harlan from South Dakota. She has a sudden connection with him and invites him along and there love for each other starts to grow. When Tobe's overbearing father refuses her to see him, Harlan does what he can to get her and her little brother away from their father and we start to learn about who Harlan really is. From the first frame, I was gripped. Although it did seem to have a certain predictability about it and it does raise common themes, the film builds character and ideas with such skill. We are shown the Valley quite simply, with its 5-10 lanes on the busy roads and landing planes overhead, its a normal little American town. From here, what hit the note with me, was the characters. In the vain of 'Taxi Driver' (but of course, not as complex), we are given Harlan Curruthers. He is a cowboy, or at least, he believes he is one....what gives us that idea is that he not always there mentally and he has a strange innocence like a child who hasn't quite grown up. Themes are raised brilliantly, how someone so out of place can adapt to a different world, but also his kindness and skill adapts well right away. There is a little love story in the vain of 'Fatal Attraction' to be had, but it has that sweet innocence of any young love. There are so many qualities to these characters and ideas that are raised that I loved, that I was shocked to see the sudden change. As the third act approaches, it can't keep itself cohesive or engaging. A sudden change in tone occurs and an overpowering homage to Westerns that isn't needed (A gunfight in a small western town....thats a film set of all things) pulls it down. The acting though is another great quality. Edward Norton gives a lot of charisma to the role as he always does and a considerable amount of depth and range to this dysfunctional soul, it isn't as impressive as his earlier roles, but he still leads. Evan Rachel Wood is an impressive young actress and adapts to the changes of feeling with her character. Rory Culkin is picking up more roles by the year and is building a presence and David Morse is superb as the overbearing father, who not only tries to love his kids, but has his mind away on other things and doesn't realize how far he goes. There's an intensity and caring in David's eyes that are perfect for this role.

    Down in the Valley has the vibe of such classics as 'Taxi Driver' and 'Fatal Attraction' with a tinge of western flair and it really could have been the little cousin of those films, but when director David Jacobson decides to homage westerns and shift the tone on both the film and lead character too much in the third act, its bog down the high qualities the film had going for it. I certainly give it a solid 4 stars for the first 2 acts, but the third act takes it down a notch for me. Definitely worth a watch but be prepared for the shift in tone towards the end.
  • magnum32004
    October 31, 2007
    magnum32004
    A cerebral romance with wonderful performances from Ed Norton, Evan Rachel Wood, Rory Culkin, & David Morse.

View All Down in the Valley Reviews

Critic Reviews

Jonathan Rosenbaum
December 18, 2006
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

Both actors work hard to give this disturbing crime story some flavor and substance, but the narrative is overextended and poorly organized. Full Review

Dave Calhoun
June 24, 2006
Dave Calhoun, Time Out

Strange but compelling. Full Review

Roger Moore
June 23, 2006
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

It aims to be a Badlands for a new generation. It's closer to The O.C. with horses. Full Review

Terry Lawson
June 2, 2006
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

Even if this drama from David Jacobson can't quite cover all the territory the director-writer is looking to survey, it still's one of the most original movies in a long time. Full Review

Robert Denerstein
June 2, 2006
Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News

Jacobson kicks up a lot of dust here, but as it begins to settle, the movie becomes more and more muddled.

Michael Booth
June 2, 2006
Michael Booth, Denver Post

Norton sells it, as far as all of this can possibly go. Even if you doubt some of the action, you never doubt the existence of Harlan, a man out of time and out of options. Full Review

Bill Muller
June 1, 2006
Bill Muller, Arizona Republic

With a distant yet affecting performance, Norton (Fight Club, The Italian Job) reminds us why he's often considered among the best American actors, right alongside Sean Penn. Full Review

Colin Covert
June 1, 2006
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

Thirty minutes shorter, this would be a swell romantic chiller. As it stands, the film collapses under the weight of cowboy mythologies drawn out to unsustainable lengths.

Rene Rodriguez
May 26, 2006
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald

If the movie isn't exactly satisfying as a whole, it is certainly provocative. Full Review

Bruce Westbrook
May 26, 2006
Bruce Westbrook, Houston Chronicle

Like too many films, Down in the Valley turns on its viewers. Full Review

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  • what actor chased after a red dragon, spent some time down in the valley and joined a fight club?  Answer »
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