Not a first look exactly (the image made the rounds when the festival was announced), but the Sundance Film Festival preview for Derek Cianfrance’s “Blue Valentine” starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams has an interesting soundtrack connection of note.
According to the “about the film” details, music for the film will be provided for by indie-rockers Grizzly Bear whose sound is of course an experimental, psychedelic pop-folk-rock (in snob circles they are known derisively as a sub-Animal Collective type). The band’s latest album, Veckatimest, was released earlier this year to major critical acclaim and their involvement in this film is sure to makes waves in the independent music community. Presumably this means an original score, and there are no additional details out there so far, but it sounds like a fair assumption if past Sundance details are any indication
The Sundance page also contains the film’s synopsis with one particular point catching our eye. See if you can spot it:
“Blue Valentine” is an intimate, shattering portrait of a disintegrating marriage.
On the far side of a once-passionate romance, Cindy (Michelle Williams) and Dean (Ryan Gosling) are married with a young daughter. Hoping to save their marriage, they steal away to a theme hotel. We then encounter them years earlier, when they met and fell in love — full of life and hope.
Moving fluidly between these two time periods, “Blue Valentine” unfolds like a cinematic duet whose refrain asks, where did their love go? Framing the film as a mystery whose answer lies scattered in time (and in character), filmmaker Derek Cianfrance constructs an elegant set of dualities: past and present, youth and adulthood, vitality and entropy. The rigor of his process is visible throughout the film. Eliminating artificial devices, he has only the truth of the characters to work with. Because Gosling and Williams bring amazing intensity and emotional honesty to their roles, the experience of connecting to these two souls becomes truly moving.
A young daughter? That’s new info and certainly adds a whole new dynamic to the relationship. Said daughter will be played by 5 year old Faith Wladyka who will be making her feature film debut and may just add another element of heartbreak and/or joy to the story. Meanwhile, Wladyka’s on-screen parents — both of whom we’re big fans of — seem to be earning rave reviews from the preview, though would you expect anything less from two of the more stronger talents from their generation.
Originally set for a 2009 release, the film is now scheduled for a second quarter release but, before that, will be premiering at Sundance on the 24th of January.