Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

GrimPrecise I'll tell you why so serious

Dorathen Better Late Then Never

Isbel A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

MartinHafer "Valerie" is a movie that only gets better the more you watch of the film. Up until the last 15 minutes or so, I wasn't that impressed with the story (or Miss Ekberg's acting) but it all got very exciting towars teh end...making it well worth seeing.The story begins with a mass murder. John Garth (Sterling Hayden) leaves a home after a shooting which left three people dead and his wife shot and close to death. The film shows both his account and hers of the events leading up to the shooting...a shooting he claims was in self defense. What really happened?In some ways, this story is like the classic Japanese film "Rashomon", though instead of three viewpoints you have two...and teasing apart what REALLY happened is a bit easier in "Valerie". It's a simpler story...but still well done. As I mentioned above, my only quibble was some of Ekberg's acting....it often wasn't great and her accent was a bit thick, so, if possible, watch with captions.

dbdumonteil Like in "the iron sheriff" ,which also features Hayden as the lead,the movie begins when many important events happened .In this whodunit disguised as western, the hero wanted to piece together the past ,meeting several suspects ,during his son' s trial .We watched the story through different eyes .The same goes for "Valerie" which is nothing but a long flashback;whereas the scenes are told by the hero or his lawyer or by the showdown's victim,the story takes an entirely new meaning .The main inspiration is not the traditional western,but rather Japanese Kurosawa's "Rashomon"(1950) -which was remade by Martin Ritt as ""the outrage" (1964) The story sustains interest throughout ,except for the final scenes which are botched.Anita Ekberg possesses enough ambiguity to pass for an angel or a demon.Sterling Hayden is ,as usual,an imposing individual,even in the scenes of his trial when he is supposed to keep a low profile.

Spikeopath Valerie is directed by Gerd Oswald and written by Leonard Heiderman and Emmett Murphy. It stars Sterling Hayden, Anita Ekberg and Anthony Steel. Music is by Albert Glasser and cinematography by Ernest Laszlo.John Garth (Hayden) is arrested and put on trial for the wounding of his wife Valerie (Ekberg) and murder of her parents. The trial hinges on three testimonies, each telling in flashback what actually unfolded to lead up to the bloodshed. But who is telling the truth?Set in the West, a murder mystery with a noirish edge, with crisp black and white photography keeping things in the ream of sombre, Valerie is a mixed bag. Yet it works as entertainment, the screenplay has some surprises in store, where it's not afraid to paint a world of wanton desires, seedy suspicions, violent mistreatment and possible war tainted masochistic tendencies. The court case at the centre of tale throws up the sometimes fragility of the law, with some biased spice and hurtful hearsay added into the mix, and it all builds nicely to a dramatically bleak finale. Hayden delivers one for his fans, all straight backed machismo and menacing drawl, and Ekberg scores well as a scenic beauty who deftly pulls off a dual portrayal that calls for seduction or victim credibility. Steel, Ekberg's real life beau, is a bit lightweight but doesn't harm the drama, while there's not much airy landscapes to enjoy (filmed on location at Iverson Ranch in Chatsworth). Still, this is very much one for fans of the stars to seek out, whilst noir and Western fans will find pleasures too. 7/10

alexandre michel liberman (tmwest) This is an interesting western about a husband (Sterling Hayden) who shoots his wife (Anita Ekberg) and her parents. The story is told in flashback from both husband and wife, each story contradicting the other. It gives a chance for Anita to act, a chance she did not have in most of her films, where what counted was her physical presence. She is at her best when she uses her power of seduction with Hayden's brother. Hayden is very good as John Garth, a man who fought in the war for the Union, where his job was to get confessions from prisoners. Even Anthony Steel, who was married to Anita in real life and never was much of an actor is good here as the Rev. Blake who leaves us in doubt if he is having an affair with Anita or not.