In A Valley Of Violence

In A Valley Of Violence, Paul (Hawke) is a lone drifter who wanders into the forgotten town of Denton, Texas—dubbed by locals as the “valley of violence.” There, he picks a fight with the wrong man, Gilly (Ransone), the troublemaking son of the town's unforgiving Marshal (Travolta). As tensions arise between Paul and Gilly, an inevitable act of violence starts a disastrous chain reaction that quickly drags the whole town into the bloody crosshairs of revenge. Only the world-weary Marshal struggles to stop the violent hysteria, but after a gruesome discovery about Paul's past…there's no stopping the escalation. (Gary Reber)

Special features include a behind-the-scenes featurette, upfront previews, and an UltraViolet digital copy.

The 2.38:1 1080p AVC picture was photographed in anamorphic Techniscope on 35mm Kodak film stock, Film grain is minor. The color palette is rich and warm, with natural earth tones exhibited in the wooden structure town of Denton and the surrounding desolate valley. Browns dominate, from the wooden buildings and dirt mounds. The Marshal stands out with his black coat and hat against the backdrop. The others wear browns and grays, and the women are in light cotton dresses. There are scant others in the town, but everything is perfectly natural and realistic. Contrast is well balanced throughout as well as shadow delineation. The sky is the bright element in the scenes, with light blue hues. Resolution is generally good, especially during close-ups. Fleshtones are perfectly natural. This is a terrific-looking film with an old but unique western feel. (Gary Reber)

The DTS-HD Master Audio™ 5.1-channel soundtrack is dialogue focused, with realistic but limited atmospherics. Sound effects entail realistic gunfire, both rifle and pistol, and at times are nicely directional with surround impact. Foley also is well constructed. The music is prominent and rhythmic with deep but natural bass. The music extends wide and deep across the soundstage and extends effectively to the surrounds. Dialogue is natural and spatial integration is generally good. The overall sound is nicely dynamic, especially the music and sound effects, This is an engaging soundtrack that nicely complements this unique throwback to Westerns. (Gary Reber)