Echo Valley

If ever a film made you want to scream in frustration, this would be it. From the constant betrayals of trust, to people getting away with horrendous crimes, to the overly-forgiving mom... it will drive you INSANE! That said, the acting was excellent across the board. Julianne Moore is convincing as the mother who will do anything for her child, even if her role is identical to what she's done in her last 50 films. Sydney Sweeney, while perhaps slightly exaggerated at times, delivers a strong performance as an addict, with very realistic addict behaviours. The standout for me was Domhnall Gleeson, who truly shone as the conniving, self-centred drug dealer. I'm so used to seeing him in more passive, underdog roles, so this was a great chance for him to show a different side.

That being said, the story and plot were absolutely maddening. I cannot accept the way Moore's character Kate treats Claire (Sweeney), and vice versa. It felt far too unrealistic. A mother's love is unconditional, yes, but there is a difference between unconditional and overindulgent. At some point, long before the events in the film, Kate should have realised that her constant "help" was doing far more harm than good. I hate when films normalise this dynamic between parents and children and villainise the voice of reason. I fully understand the parental instinct to protect your children at all costs, but when your actions only drag them deeper into their self-destruction, who are you really protecting?

Greetings again from the darkness. We should all be so fortunate to have a friend as loyal as Leslie, and we should strive to be wiser than Kate so that we don't ever have the need to test that friend's loyalty. Director Michael Pearce (ENCOUNTER, 2021) is working with a script from screenwriter Brad Ingelsby (the excellent "Mare of Easttown", OUT OF THE FURNACE, 2018), and a superb cast to deliver a thriller that offers both familiar territory and twists and turns in a film that is ultimately relatively entertaining to watch.

The film opens with a stunning overhead shot of a lifeless body floating in the middle of a tree-lined lake. We don't know who it is or the story of how it got there. Oscar winner Julianne Moore plays Kate, still in a grieving funk nine months after a tragic accident killed her wife Patty (Kristina Valada-Viars, "Chicago Med"), who is seen only in flashbacks and heard on saved voicemails. Kate manages to crawl from bed each morning and do just enough to keep her horses alive on the farm where her business is giving riding lessons. Since she's cancelled most of those lessons, she must grovel to her ex-husband (Kyle MacLachlan) so she can fix the sagging roof on her barn. The two argue about money, her state of mind, and their daughter ... whom dad describes as "sick".

It doesn't take long for us to understand how all the pieces of their argument fit together because daughter Claire (Sydney Sweeney, "The White Lotus", "Euphoria") shows up at the farm, and we learn that her mother Kate is the ultimate example of an enabler. Claire has a long-standing drug problem as well as the corresponding mental issues. She knows her mother can be manipulated into doing just about anything for her. It doesn't take long for a couple of other players to enter. Ryan (Edmund Duncan) is Claire's drug-addled boyfriend, and Jackie (the ubiquitous Domhnall Gleeson) is their compelling drug dealer ... one who is out about ten grand due to the idiocy of Claire and Ryan.

Once the dynamics are in place, the twists and turns begin - none of which will be detailed here. You should know that it's all pretty suspenseful provided you are able to overlook a bit of creative stretching from a storytelling perspective. Fiona Shaw plays Kate's bestie Leslie (as mentioned in the opening paragraph), and what comes across clearly here is that this group of actors definitely elevate the material to the point where we actually care what happens to Kate, Claire, and Leslie. Ms. Moore excels in her grief, in her role as (overly) dedicated mother, and as a shrewd independent. Ms. Sweeney goes against her usual glam role and flashes some pretty impressive emotional range, while Mr. Gleeson nails the opportunistic drug dealer. It's kind of hard not to notice that the males in the story are all various shades of scumbags, save for the detective near the end.

Cinematographer Benjamin Kracun (PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, 2020) manages to capture both the beauty of the setting and the intensity and emotion of the personal interactions. Composer Jed Kurzel (SLOW WEST, 2015; THE BABDOOK, 2014) takes a unique approach to the score, preventing it from sounding like most suspense films. It seems probable that Mr. Ingelsby writing and Mr. Pearce's directing would have been better served in a limited series ... although this outstanding cast might not have happened. I found the film's ending somewhat less than satisfying, yet overall the entertainment value was fine.

The film will premiere globally on AppleTV+ on June 13, 2025.

One of the greatest actresses in the world, really digging into her part as the mother of a wayward daughter. You believe her in the first half as she tries to cover up evidence and a body. Then things go sideways and a little dopey. The second half could've used a serious rewrite. Just didn't buy it. No spoilers. I'm giving this a 7 because Julianne Moore gives a world class performance and you believe it. Sydney Sweeney is also great as the junkie daughter. The very last scene was so predictable that it made me cringe. But overall it's a good watch because of the two leads. Gleeson is also believable as the dealer. Second half could've used a rewrite.

I watched this movie only because of its pair of actresses: the renowned and almost always excellent Julianne Moore and the rising star Sydney Sweeney, who has been catching my attention since the series "Euphoria" (2019). In fact, many good people have come out of this HBO series starring Zendaya and have constantly appeared in other productions.

So, without knowing anything other than having seen a trailer that didn't tell me much other than a complex relationship between a mother and daughter, each one experiencing their own serious problems, and the presence of a body, I got on board with the movie. And what a pleasant surprise.

Written by Brad Ingelsby, who also wrote the excellent HBO series "Mare of Easttown" (2021), "Echo Valley" is a delight for those who like that genre of films that deal with a crime and the complex situation of solving a problem amidst ethical and moral dilemmas.

In the midst of all this, we have a mother grieving the death of her wife and having financial problems maintaining her farm, a drug-addicted and unpredictable daughter, and an unpredictable bandit played by Donhnall Gleason.

And more than that cannot be said so as not to spoil the entire experience of the film. The only obvious conclusion is the realization that it is not easy to be a mother.

I watched this movie because Julianne Moore is one of my favorites, but this is one film of hers I wish I hadn't seen. It leaves a bad taste and yet someone here ridiculously called the movie "fun." How is a movie like this "fun"? Do you know what the word means?

There's a big difference between unconditional love and enabling a "child" who's a hopeless case and a parasite. What Moore's character should have done is dump the daughter in the lake instead of the other body and good riddance. The daughter is a despicable character with no redeeming qualities who's been given far too many chances and far too much help and yet Moore's character keeps going back for more. She should have had her daughter arrested and written her off once and for all. It was impossible to feel sympathetic for the mother since she didn't seem to mind being a used and abused doormat. Not one of Julianne Moore's better roles, in my opinion. And the non-stop foul language in this movie! If I had a "child" talk to me that way, they'd be knocked across the room. Evidently, many twenty-something screen writers today think that everybody and their mother constantly uses such language just because the people in their circle do.