In A Valley Of Violence

''In a Valley of Violence'' is a 2016 American black comedy Western thriller film written and directed by Ti West. Jason Blum serves as producer through his production company Blumhouse Productions. The film stars Ethan Hawke, Taissa Farmiga, James Ransone, Karen Gillan, and John Travolta.

''In a Valley of Violence'' had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 12, 2016, and was released in a limited release and through video on demand on October 21, 2016, by Focus World. The film was a commercial failure grossing only $61,797, but received critical praise for the screenplay, direction, and the performances.

Plot

A drifter named Paul and his dog, Abbie, make their way toward Mexico through the desert of the Old West. They encounter a priest, who holds Paul at gunpoint to steal his horse, but Paul has Abbie attack him. Paul empties the priest's revolver, takes his water canteen, pours whiskey on the priest's wound, then goes on his way.

Paul enters the nearby town of Denton. In the tavern, Paul meets Gilly, an obnoxious man who challenges him to a fight when Paul ignores his attempt to start a conversation. Gilly approaches Abbie to coax Paul out of the tavern, but Paul knocks him out. As Gilly's fiancée Ellen rushes to his aid, Paul heads to the town's inn. Ellen's younger sister Mary-Anne works at the hotel. She thanks him for standing up to Gilly, and draws Paul and Abbie a bath. Clyde Martin, the town Marshal and Gilly's father, meets Paul in the inn's lobby. Clyde assured Paul that he knows Gilly provoked the incident. After identifying Paul as an ex-soldier, Clyde tells him to leave Denton in the morning. Mary-Anne gives Paul a picture to remember her by.

That night, Paul and Abbie are found by Gilly and his henchmen Roy, Tubby, and Harris, who announce their arrival by shooting and wounding Abbie. Paul vows to murder all of them, while they label him an army deserter and traitor. Gilly stabs his dog to death and has his men push Paul off a cliff, expecting the fall to kill him. Paul awakens the next day, buries Abbie and tells her that he is going to break his promise to her of no killing. On his way back to the town, Paul again encounters the priest, who has been run out of Denton, and steals his mule and revolver.

In Denton, Mary-Anne shelters Paul and offers help. She begs Paul to take her away after he gets revenge. He refuses, telling her that he abandoned his wife and daughter to enlist and never intends to return. At the hotel, Paul kills Roy with a razor blade in a bath tub. The Marshal is alerted to the situation and has the men prepare for a fight. He orders Harris to get on a roof with a rifle and Gilly to stay behind to keep the women safe. Gilly accuses Mary-Anne of aiding Paul and while arguing Ellen reveals to Gilly that she is pregnant.

On the roof of the jailhouse, Paul shoots Harris when the latter at gunpoint refuses to shoot Tubby and the Marshal. Inside the jailhouse, upset at the deaths of Roy and Harris, Tubby is unable to cope with the bloodshed and throws down his gun. Paul shoots Tubby in the back through a window. The Marshal agrees to leave his weapons inside so that they can talk. Gilly then comes out to kill Paul, but the Marshal stands between them to try to talk the situation down. Gilly and Paul shoot at each other with the Marshal between them, fatally shooting him in the process.

Paul is wounded and hides in a barn. When Gilly enters, Paul slips a noose over his head and hangs him before dropping him still breathing to the ground. Paul beats him and then relents. As Gilly draws a knife, Mary-Anne appears and shoots him in the back. As Mary-Anne and Paul make their way back to the inn, a guilt-ridden Ellen finds Gilly's body. The priest wanders back through Denton and Paul tells him that he should stay, because "we could all use a little saving."

Cast

* Ethan Hawke as Paul
* Taissa Farmiga as Mary-Anne
* James Ransone as Deputy Gilly Martin
* Karen Gillan as Ellen
* John Travolta as Marshal Clyde Martin
* Burn Gorman as Priest
* Toby Huss as Harris
* Larry Fessenden as Roy
* Tommy Nohilly as Tubby (a.k.a. "Lawrence")
* Jumpy as Abbie

Production

Pre-production

The film was written and directed by Ti West, in collaboration with Jason Blum of Blumhouse Productions and Universal Pictures. West also served as a producer for the project, alongside Blum, Jacob Jaffke and Peter Phok. In July 2014, Blum discussed his involvement with the film, "After Ethan awkeand I did ''Sinister'' and ''The Purge'', he really, really wanted to do a Western ... It took about a year to find ''In a Valley of Violence'' ... which is Ti West's movie." He added that what drew him to the project was his love of West's approach to filmmaking. In March 2016, West revealed in an interview he had written the role with Hawke in mind.

On March 18, 2014, ''The Hollywood Reporter'' announced that the film would star John Travolta and Ethan Hawke in main roles, with Hawke portraying the film's protagonist Paul, and Travolta portraying the Marshal Clyde Martin, who has a wooden leg. On May 22, 2014, ''Deadline Hollywood'' reported that Taissa Farmiga had been cast as Mary-Anne, a young innkeeper. The following day, Karen Gillan was cast as Ellen, the sister of Farmiga's character. On June 3, 2014, it was announced that James Ransone had been cast in the final main role of Deputy Gilly Martin, the fiancé of Ellen and the son of the Marshal.

While promoting the film, West spoke about finding a "talented" dog to fill the role of Abbie, Paul's canine companion. The part was given to Jumpy, whose trainer, Omar von Muller, also trained Uggie, the late star of '' The Artist'' (2011).

Filming

Principal photography for the project began on June 23, 2014, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and lasted approximately five weeks, 25 days in total. The film was shot on 35mm film. A makeshift Western town was built at Cerro Pelon Ranch in Galisteo, New Mexico for the duration of production and was used as the primary location for filming. The elaborate set consisted of a saloon, ramshackle houses, train tracks and a feed-and-seed store. The film's cinematographer, Eric Robbins, revealed that since they were shooting on film, footage wouldn't be seen for several days. Travolta finished filming his scenes on July 16, 2014. Gillan wrapped her scenes on July 18, and Farmiga completed her scenes the following day, on July 19, 2014. On July 26, 2014, Ti West announced on his Twitter account that principal photography for the film had concluded.

Post-production

West edited the film in Burbank, California. On September 8, 2014, West appeared on Bret Easton Ellis' podcast and discussed the filming process of ''In a Valley of Violence'', stating, "It's a Western from the first shot, so I'm really interested to hear people calling it slow burn ... It's a Western from frame one to the end frame, so there's no 'and then it became a Western' – it's always a Western. And that's kind of refreshing for me to make. It's just been artistically a pleasure to do." On April 22, 2015, a raw cut of the film was test screened at the ArcLight cinema in Pasadena, California. In late September 2015, West stated on his official Twitter account that the film was in the final stages of post-production.

Soundtrack

On January 12, 2015, it was announced that composer Jeff Grace had been hired to write the musical score for the film, marking the fourth time Grace has scored for Ti West, having previously composed music for three of West's feature films: '' Trigger Man'' (2007), ''The House of the Devil'' (2009), and '' The Innkeepers'' (2011). The soundtrack album, featuring Grace's original score, was released via digital download by Back Lot Music on the same day as the film's theatrical and VOD release: October 21, 2016.

Distribution

Marketing

On August 17, 2015, the first still image from the film was released in black and white, featuring Ethan Hawke riding a horse. Two more images were released on February 25, 2016, along with a more detailed plot synopsis. In March 2016, the first poster for the film was released by ''Entertainment Weekly'', shortly before its world premiere. The first clip from the film, featuring Hawke and Travolta, was released in July 2016, ahead of its screening at the Fantasia International Film Festival. The official trailer debuted on ''Entertainment Weekly'' website on July 19, 2016.

Release

''In a Valley of Violence'' had its world premiere as a headlining film at South by Southwest on March 12, 2016. The film screened at the Chicago Critics Film Festival on May 25, 2016, followed by a Q&A with West, and the Seattle International Film Festival on May 28, 2016. Prior to its premiere, Focus World acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film, with Universal Pictures set to distribute internationally.

The film was released in the United States, in a limited release and through video on demand, on October 21, 2016. It was initially reported that the film would be released on September 16.

Home media

''In a Valley of Violence'' was released on DVD and Blu-ray by Universal Pictures Home Entertainment on December 27, 2016, with special features including a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film.

The film was released for streaming on Netflix in October 2020.

Reception

Box office

''In a Valley of Violence'' was released to 33 theaters across the United States on October 21, 2016, and made $10,722 in its first day of release. In its opening weekend, the film made $29,343, for a per theater average of $889. Overall, the film made $61,797 in the United States, taking $44,738 in its first week, and $17,059 in its second and final week of release.

Critical response

The film received positive reviews from critics. On review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, it received a 77% approval rating, based on 71 reviews, with a weighted average of 6.79/10. The critical consensus reads, "''In a Valley of Violence'' offers a smartly conceived homage to classic Westerns that transcends pastiche with absurdist humor and a terrific cast." Metacritic reports a score of 64 out of 100, based on 20 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Andrew Barker for ''Variety'' wrote, "Stripping its gunslinger plot down to the most essential pillars, the film has plenty of incidental pleasures to offer: a few chuckles, some typically Westian explosions of violence, a deliriously fun score, and a pair of perfectly solid performances from Ethan Hawke and John Travolta." John DeFore of ''The Hollywood Reporter'', who in his review praised the performance of Hawke but found Travolta miscast, wrote of the film, "A genre revival that's always enjoyable, even when suffering a minor personality crisis near the end." Bill Goodykoontz of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' awarded the film 3 out of 5 stars, writing, "... what makes ''In a Valley of Violence'' a notch better than a simple genre exercise is West's sense of fun. Occasionally he overindulges it, but it serves the film well."

References

External links

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{{Ti West

2016 films
2016 black comedy films
2010s thriller films
2016 Western (genre) films
American black comedy films
American thriller films
American Western (genre) films
2016 independent films
Blumhouse Productions films
Films directed by Ti West
Films produced by Jason Blum
Films set in the 1890s
Films shot in New Mexico
Focus Features films
Universal Pictures films
Films about deserters
2010s English-language films
2010s American films