Valan: Valley of Angels (2019) User Reviews

Valley of decay

[ilozzoli · 7/10 · 30 November 2020]

Valan is one of those movies where atmosphere completely dominates over story and characters. It is very dark; the 'good' characters are all mentally unstable, and everyone else is completely neglectful at best. The shots of the raunchy cityscape, and the snow-covered mountain scenes shot from above set the vibe really well. Some of the scenes, like the one where Miklós offers a beer to the protagonist, or when the local police chief is found stone drunk in his office are hilarious, and they go really well with the atmosphere of the movie. Acting is not particularly good, and the dialogue is pretty mediocre. There is a crime story which is slowly uncovered by the lead character, but you can never really get invested in it. You know right from the start that it is going to be something very dark and pointless; I was not even interested in getting an answer to questions you would ask in a typical crime story (like who and why etc.). All in all, Valan is only slightly better than an average movie, but if you look at it as an attempt to give us an insight into the long decay of a community, it is near perfect.

A very cozy and exciting Hungarian crime

[jamby-1 · 8/10 · 20 September 2020]

Totally worth it to watch it. I suggest it to the ones who loves crimes. it contains all the elements that a good crime should contain.

Definitely worth watching

[SSh0cK · 8/10 · 12 December 2021]

The biggest advantage of this movie is definitely its climate. The poor as well as almost abandoned rural area of Transylvania provides with a difficult and intriguing atmosphere. The story is well written but at some points predictable. I recommend watching it especially if you are into crime dramas.

Hungaro-transylvanian scandinavian crime

[pivarnyik96 · 6/10 · 24 May 2020]

Without hungarian subtitle, I didn't understand the half of the movie, but the plot was exciting and unexpected

Kinda lame, but good plot twist

[flaviu_slim · 6/10 · 25 January 2021]

The acting is poor, some scenes are too unreal and lame, but there are also surprising ones, played decent. The cop some skinny dude, that wouldn't have passed the academy most likely. He is driven, motivated and at times he plays his part well, at times very disappointing. The scenarios look something out of 90's, even though action takes place nowadays. Would have given it a 5 but it deserves an extra point for the final scene, the down the road with the girl one.

Warning! Spoiler from now on.



Plot is weak as it doesn't make much sense. How an old decripit dude can lure young girls. No sense at all. His madness might make sense, but there's no way he'd be able to lure them willingly.

Not bad for an European movie though .

Colder than ice .

[ulicknormanowen · 8/10 · 2 September 2022]

A very successful film noir , all the more somber since it takes place in the purity of a snow-covered landscape.

Although the viewer knows who the culprit is almost as soon as he appears ,it does not matter ,for the atmosphere is everything , always threatening and ominous ever since the impressive first scene :two plain-clothes policemen,acting as customers, enter a brothel where the prostitutes are minor girls ;it sets the tone for all that follows.

And the story is all the more poignant and gripping since one of the cops is deeply involved the story :might the frozen body they have discovered be that of his beloved sister who dIsappeared when he was only a teenager? And many other girls disappear in this God-forsaken doomed region .Some turn to religion ,for it seems that evil dominates the souls ,hence the uncle's help for the desesperate people who want to confide in somebody.

The screenplay is complex, the story is slow-moving , but it will keep you glued to your chair till the very end;well acted.