On June 13, the Apple TV+ platform released the dramatic thriller «Echo Valley», in which Julianne Moore and Sydney Sweeney play a mother and daughter, respectively. The film was co-produced by Sir Ridley Scott (who seems to have finally finished with «Alien»), while for Domhnall Gleeson, who also played one of the roles, this is his second project on the apple service after the recent «Foutain of Youth» Guy Ritchie. In this review, we’re going to find out how interesting and suspenseful the announced thriller looks and whether it’s worth the audience’s attention.
Pluses:
a normal dramatic thriller that seems to envelop you and doesn't let go until the final credits; as always, a great performance by Julianne Moore; the movie has a lot to surprise you, but we'll do without spoilers here;
Minuses:
the dramatic clearly conflicts with the thriller instead of coexisting harmoniously; there is a problem with believability; the slowness of the narrative, the pessimistic tone and the sheer gloom will definitely not appeal to some viewers;
«Echo Valley»
Genre thriller, drama
Director Michael Pierce
Starring Julianne Moore, Sydney Sweeney, Domhnall Gleeson, Kyle MacLachlan, Fiona Shaw, Edmund Donovan, Rebecca Kreskov
Premiere Apple TV+
Year of release 2025
Website IMDb
Not long ago, Kate Garrett lost her wife and is still reeling from the death of her beloved. She has her own small farm with horses somewhere in the Pennsylvania countryside, but because of her grief, she has quit teaching horseback riding lessons. Her daughter Claire, a drug addict, does not add to the unhappy woman’s joy.
One rainy night, Claire stumbles into her mother’s house, crying, very embarrassed, and wearing bloody clothes, and confesses that she has done something very terrible. Without a second thought, the desperate woman sets out to make things right, but she doesn’t realize that this step could literally cost her everything.
After its premiere on Apple TV+, according to the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes at the time of writing, critics’ opinions of «Echo Valley» split exactly 50 to 50. And you can understand both sides. On the one hand, this extremely unhurried, completely gloomy dramatic thriller seems to gradually envelop you and does not let go until the final credits roll. On the other hand, the closer we get to the denouement, the harder it becomes to believe in what’s happening on the screen.
The problem is that alongside the thriller showdowns, dramatic passions are also raging, but Brad Ingelsby, the screenwriter of the hit «Mare of Easttown» (2021), and director Michael Pearce failed to make the genres coexist harmoniously, rather than conflict with each other.
For example, the side plot involving the protagonist’s dead wife seems completely unnecessary, as it adds neither depth nor weight to this already sad story. It doesn’t take a great movie expert to realize that the crack in Kate’s bedroom ceiling is actually a crack in her broken soul. But the fact is that a long-suffering woman would have been perfectly content with a stupid daughter who makes her life a living hell without the additional tragic background.
In general, «Echo Valley» is one of those films where the narrative is in no hurry to develop, and the faces gathered in front of the camera radiate only grief. Even the sunny beach scenes contain all the sadness of this world, and the picture of — is deliberately discolored. So if this approach doesn’t appeal to you, and you are also principled about the plausibility of the depicted —, it’s better to pass by.
For the rest of us, there is a chance to get acquainted with a more or less sane thriller that catches us not so much with suspense as with an appeal to the viewer’s sense of justice. This is supported by appropriate pessimism and sensual work from Julianne Moore. Thanks to this, the story, which is a one-way street for some time, lacking any resistance, really does not leave you indifferent, and you will definitely want to know how it all ends.
«God gave me a daughter» — at some point the viewer may think, and they will be right. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such a vile girl in a movie as Sidney Sweeney’s character appeared on the screen. Like the corpse that floated up from the bottom of the lake in the second shot, the film’s leitmotif lies on the surface, namely — how far is a mother willing to go for her child? Even if this child is a complete drug addict and selfish person who ekes out a miserable existence.
It is not without reason that a beautiful lake called «Marsh Creek» will also appear in the film, which allegedly emerged from some a classic slasherand Domhnall Gleeson with a hairstyle a la Wynnyck. It is on these two pillars that the local conflict rests, while Claire’s arch is rapidly coming to naught. This is not to say that the replacement of Sidney Sweeney with Gleeson makes things worse or better, but at this point, Kate’s situation is as difficult as possible, so it’s still interesting to follow the events.
The Apple novelty will definitely not be on par with the greatest representatives of the genre, and there is a complete lack of believability here. But the filmmakers of this quiet, unhurried and infinitely sad movie manage to keep your attention, and a lot of the credit for this goes to Julianne Moore’s fragile shoulders. And, in the end, «Echo Valley» is not about suspense, but rather about compassion mixed with an unsettling call for a sense of justice. At least with regard to the pretty horses.
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