In a Valley of Violence

In a Valley of Violence
Directed by Ti West
Produced by
Written by Ti West
Starring
Music by Jeff Grace
Cinematography Eric Robbins
Edited by Ti West
Production
company
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release dates
  • December 4, 2015
Country United States
Language English

In a Valley of Violence is an upcoming American Western revenge thriller film written, directed, produced and edited by Ti West. It stars Ethan Hawke, John Travolta, Karen Gillan, Taissa Farmiga, James Ransone and Burn Gorman. The film is set for release in the United States and United Kingdom on December 4, 2015, and will be distributed theatrically by Universal Pictures.[1]

Plot

A drifter named Paul (Hawke) arrives in a small town, seeking revenge on the thugs who murdered his friend. Sisters Mary Anne (Farmiga) and Ellen (Gillan), who run the town's hotel, help Paul in his quest for vengeance.

Cast

Production

Pre-production

"I had a Western that I was going to write. Then I heard Ethan Hawke wanted to do a Western, so I went to New York where he was doing Macbeth and I asked him about Westerns and pitched him my idea, and he liked it. So I was like, 'Alright, when you wrap, I'm going to send you a script and if you want to do it, let's do it, [and] if you don't, I'll just take the risk.'"

– Ti West on the development of the project and his first meeting with Hawke[2]

The film was written and directed by Ti West, in collaboration with Jason Blum and Blumhouse Productions, whom have previously worked together on the 2013 horror film The Sacrament.[3] West also served as a producer for the project, alongside Blum, Jacob Jaffke and Peter Phok.[4] In July 2014, Blum discussed his involvement with the film: "After Ethan [Hawke] and I did Sinister and The Purge, he really, really wanted to do a Western... It took about a year to find In a Valley of Violence, which we're shooting right now, which is Ti West's movie." He added about what drew him to the project: "[West's] approach to filmmaking, I love. He pitched me this idea and I thought it was really cool."[5]

On March 18, 2014, The Hollywood Reporter announced that the film would star John Travolta and Ethan Hawke in main roles,[3] with Hawke portraying the film's protagonist Paul, and Travolta portraying a character named The Marshal,[6] who has a wooden leg.[7] On May 22, 2014, Deadline reported that Taissa Farmiga had been cast as Mary Anne, a young woman who runs a local hotel with her sister and offers her help to Paul.[8] The following day, Karen Gillan was cast as Ellen, the older sister of Farmiga's character.[9][10] On June 3, 2014, Deadline reported that James Ransone had been cast in the supporting role of Gilly. His character is the husband of Ellen and the son of Travolta's character, The Marshal.[11]

Filming

Principal photography for the project began on June 23, 2014, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and lasted approximately five weeks.[12] The film was shot on 35mm format.[13] A makeshift Western town was built in Galisteo, New Mexico for the duration of production and was used as the primary location for filming.[7] The elaborate set consisted of "a saloon, ramshackle houses, train tracks and a feed-and-seed store."[7] Travolta finished filming his scenes on July 16, 2014.[14] Gillan wrapped her scenes on July 18,[15] and Farmiga completed her scenes the following day, on July 19, 2014.[16] On July 26, 2014, Ti West announced on his Twitter account that principal photography for the film had concluded.[17]

Post-production

West edited the film using Lit Post editing services in Burbank, California.[18] On September 8, 2014, West appeared on Bret Easton Ellis' podcast and discussed the filming process of In a Valley of Violence, stating: "It's a Western from the first shot, so I'm really interested to hear people calling it slow burn... It's a Western from frame one to the end frame, so there's no 'and then it became a Western' – it's always a Western. And that's kind of refreshing for me to make. It's just been artistically a pleasure to do."[19] On January 12, 2015, it was reported that composer Jeff Grace had been hired to write the musical score for the film. This marks the fourth film Grace has scored for Ti West, having previously composed music for three of West's feature films: Trigger Man (2007), The House of the Devil (2009), and The Innkeepers (2011).[20] On April 22, 2015, a cut of the film was screened to a test audience at the ArcLight cinema in Pasadena, California.[21]

Release

The film will be distributed theatrically in the United States by Universal Pictures. The distribution is part of a 10-year collaboration deal with NBCUniversal, Jason Blum and Blumhouse Productions.[22] It is expected to be released in cinemas in the United States and United Kingdom on December 4, 2015.[13] In late March 2015, director Ti West stated that the film had received an R rating from the Motion Picture Association of America due to violence and strong language.[23]

References

  1. ↑ "Blumhouse and NBCUniversal Sign 10-Year Production Deal". Coming Soon. July 21, 2014.
  2. ↑ Foutch, Haleigh (June 4, 2014). "Ti West Talks The Sacrament, Shooting a Vérité Film, Taking a Break from Horror, His Upcoming Western In a Valley of Violence and More". Collider.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kit, Borys (March 18, 2014). "John Travolta, Ethan Hawke to Star in Western Film From Jason Blum (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  4. ↑ "Jason Blum Talks Insidious: Chapter 3, In A Valley Of Violence, and Ascension". Collider. July 18, 2014.
  5. ↑ Foutch, Haleigh (July 18, 2014). "Jason Blum Talks Insidious: Chapter 3, In a Valley of Violence, Sinister 2, Amityville, Jem and the Holograms, and Ascension". Collider. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  6. ↑ Vinyard, Papa (March 18, 2014). "Ti West is going In A Valley Of Violence with John Travolta and Ethan Hawke!!". Ain't it Cool. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Schlenker, Dave (August 21, 2014). "Local actor has small role in Travolta film". Ocala.
  8. ↑ Yamato, Jen (May 22, 2014). "Taissa Farmiga Joins Ethan Hawke, John Travolta In Revenge Western 'In A Valley Of Violence'". Deadline. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  9. ↑ Yamato, Jen (May 23, 2014). "'Doctor Who's Karen Gillan Joins Ti West's 'In A Valley Of Violence'". Deadline. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  10. ↑ Anderton, Ethan (May 27, 2014). "Karen Gillan & Taissa Farmiga Join Ti West's 'In a Valley of Violence'". First Showing. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  11. ↑ Yamato, Jen (June 3, 2014). "James Ransone Joins Blumhouse Western 'In A Valley Of Violence'". Deadline. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
  12. ↑ Casting, Project (June 5, 2014). ""In a Valley of Violence" Starring John Travolta and Ethan Hawke Acting Auditions Casting Call". Project Casting. Retrieved June 27, 2014.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Crum, Chris (December 3, 2014). "In a Valley of Violence: Here's What We Know About Ti West's Next Movie". iHorror.
  14. ↑ West, Ti (July 16, 2014). "Picture Wrap on John Travolta". Twitter. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  15. ↑ West, Ti (July 18, 2014). "Picture Wrap on Karen Gillan #InAValleyOfViolence". Twitter. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  16. ↑ West, Ti (July 19, 2014). "Picture Wrap on Taissa Farmiga #InAValleyOfViolence". Twitter. Retrieved July 20, 2014.
  17. ↑ West, Ti (July 26, 2014). "That's a Wrap! #InAValleyOfViolence". Twitter. Retrieved July 28, 2014.
  18. ↑ "In a Valley of Violence (2015) - Company Credits". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  19. ↑ Ellis, Bret Easton (September 8, 2014). "Bret Easton Ellis Podcast B.E.E. - Ti West". PodcastOne.
  20. ↑ "Jeff Grace Scoring Ti West's 'In a Valley of Violence'". Film Music Reporter. January 12, 2015.
  21. ↑ West, Ti (April 23, 2015). "Best test screening quote about my new film...". Twitter.
  22. ↑ McNary, Dave (July 20, 2014). "NBC Universal Signs Jason Blum to 10-Year Multi-Platform Deal". Variety.
  23. ↑ West, Ti (March 29, 2015). "IN A VALLEY OF VIOLENCE is rated R for violence and language". Twitter. Retrieved March 31, 2015.

External links