You should be careful who you point a gun at.
Considering Ti West shot In a Valley of Violence on 35mm film -- or to be more accurate, his cinematographer Eric Robbins did -- it's a shame few people got to see it projected in that format. And not many more were able to see its Panavision-lensed vistas on the big screen since it only received a token theatrical release back in October. At this point, I'm just happy I was able to squeeze it in before the year was up, which is more than I can say for many of the other films I put on my watchlist in 2016.
Set in the mostly abandoned mining town of Denton, Texas -- located in the "valley of violence" as it's called by the locals, a far cry from its namesake's designation as "The Home of Happiness" in The Rocky Horror Picture Show and Shock Treatment -- West's first western is about a drifter by the name of Paul who's "just passing through" on his way to Mexico, accompanied by his horse Lady and dog Abby, whose only trick, as he says whenever anyone asks, is "She bites." Unfortunately for all of them, but especially for Abby, while in town they have a run-in with the marshal's cocksure son, who picks a fight with Paul and doesn't stand down when his father, recognizing Paul as ex-calvary, tells him to let the man go on their way. (This being the Old West, the baddies don improvised hoods when they ambush Paul's encampment outside of town that night. Not sure who they think they're hiding their identities from, though, since they take them off almost immediately.)
As Paul, Ethan Hawke is taciturn when it suits him, letting his gun (and whatever else comes to hand) speak for him when it's time to take action against those who wronged him. His primary target is arrogant bully Gilly Martin (James Ransome), but Paul also takes down his three lackeys, Roy (Larry Fessenden), Harris (Toby Huss, the most reluctant of the three), and Tubby (Tommy Nohilly). Attempting to keep the peace, seeing as that's in his job description, is John Travolta's Marshal, who gets around well enough on his wooden leg, but is unable to keep his idiot son in line. That just leaves the womenfolk, namely Taissa Farmiga as plucky 16-year-old widow Mary-Anne, who runs the town's disused hotel with her flighty sister Ellen (Karen Gillan), who's also Gilly's fiancée because it isn't like there are a whole lot of eligible bachelors in Denton to choose from. Suffice it to say, after Paul is through with the place, there are even fewer still.
