Down In The Valley (2005)

Written by Nick Da Costa | Friday, March 7, 2008 |

Writer/director David Jacobson’s feature debut, Down in the Valley stars Edward Norton as city cowboy Harlan who falls madly in love with a beautiful teenager named Tobe, short for October, (Evan Rachel Wood) and befriends her timid and reclusive younger brother (Rory Culkin) against the wishes of their single father Wade (David Morse). On the surface there doesn’t seem to be much to it. However, some pitch perfect performances and assured direction make this a pleasure.

But this isn’t just a heartfelt tale of young love. Yes, Norton does seem to channel James Dean at times; a duded up rebel who sparks off the luminous, yet wilful Wood, but there’s more to it. This is a film that parallels the loss of innocence, with the continuing loss of the Western landscape. Jacobsen impressed me with his use of wide-lens shots to really open up the countryside surrounding the city, juxtaposing it with the snaking overpasses that criss-cross the screen, choking it, and the congested highways that squeeze Norton as he passes. It’s only on horseback across the green and gold hillsides, that he feels free and truly charms this city girl. Unfortunately it’s also here that the slim chance or happiness is destroyed after the theft of a horse brings him in direct confrontation with Wade.

It’s here that Jacobsen really surprises us. Wade isn’t the one dimensional protective father he appears to be; clearly unable to cope with his daughter’s affections for what is clearly a very damaged young man. What we first see as unbridled fury and abuse changes to fear that she will end up like those he sees in his job at juvie. Similarly Norton changes from harmless and soulful hick to a scarred and dangerous criminal. It’s an interesting take on the Western dynamic; especially as Harlan has never truly worked on a ranch or existed as a cowboy; he’s simply playing make believe. In a twisted sense he is a hero. In a scene reminiscent of one in Taxi Driver and that other elegiac tale Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, Harlan shoots his own reflection. His frustration at what he sees as the death of innocence whether it is the death of a West he wishes were true or most importantly the death of Tobe’s innocence.

The tonal shift in the film is a controversial one, but it feels completely organic and breathes further life into the film. Now, Harlan sinks completely into the role of Western hero, battling against Wade who he feels has destroyed happiness. It’s true that Jacobsen falters a little with the climax, stalling for some reason and littering false endings as Harlan repeatedly escapes Wade. The gunfight in the Western film set and the trapped horse in the garage are needlessly overt metaphors, but still match the unsuppressed emotion on display. The inevitable stand off between Harlan’s white shirt and Wade’s black ends a film with far greater depth than expected. Harlan could never escape civilisation, trapped once again in the skeleton of a new town, one that would in his eyes, stunt the growth of innocence and imprison age. He knows there’s a wilderness out there that still holds breathtaking power and instead of letting it slip away it should be enjoyed rather than dwelling in needless angst.

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