Valley of a Thousand Hills (2022) User Reviews

Started off well...

[DarkAngel452_ · 6/10 · 16 December 2022]

...until it became yet another Bury Your Gays trope.

It was a sweet love story that gave us a perspective from another culture not typically referenced and allowed us to feel all of the emotions between the two women.

The ending left a bitter, crushing taste in my mouth as even in 2022, we are still killing off our LGBTQIA+ characters.

We get it, being gay can be rough - can we now have some happy endings to curl up with and enjoy while we are licking our wounds.

I don't tend to leave written reviews for things that I watch, however it's late at night and I am now feeling particularly disheartened.

I enjoyed it, except the last 5 minutes...

[cleggkathleen · 7/10 · 12 February 2023]

It is a beautiful movie in terms of the scenery, the couple, and the tough journey of being queer and learning to be true to that through all the obstacles (including culture and family). Fair warning that the last five minutes ruins the happy ending. Also, I will add a sexual assault trigger warning (especially once during the movie and again in the last five minutes). I'll also include a content warning about homophobia, since that is a significant theme in the movie (and misogyny is in there as well). This includes internalized homophobia as the two women work through that in this movie in different ways.

Good movie until..

[mongoosevacations · 6/10 · 22 January 2023]

The movie was a feel good movie as in love conquers all until the ending. These women overcame cultural boundaries that are often seen in African and African American culture right now. They were strong minded women in a society were male dominance was encouraged. I had out for change as the healer explained one was born this way. That was an unexpected hope for acceptance of the ladies. The tribal mothers were indoctrinated into that not acceptance male dominance was evil. What a tragic and often used serving gay justice ending. Did they really have to throw in the masculine, this is your deserved justice ending? Made this a disheartening movie.

Well done ... A Must See !

[lashellwest · 10/10 · 30 October 2022]

For a battle well fought .... all that was left were tears.

The ending was brutal and sadening to say the least and left me feeling empty and sad for what we have become.

It was beautifully done, and reminds us that it takes courage to stand up to the norms society has put in place for us. It speaks well and shows the fear and pain we must sometimes go through to be "who we truly are". We must always remember, that love is just that, love, something so special and precious. When and if we ever find it, we must fight for it and cherish it with all our heart, as it may never come around again. . We still have so far to go.

Stay strong my brothers and sisters.

Great job!

[fromMYperspective · 10/10 · 19 January 2023]

This film was well written and captured my attention from beginning to end! Seeing this perspective from a different cultures lens was captivating, informative and did not disappoint.

I must admit that I have NEVER watched a film where I had to read the caption in its entirety so this was a first and well worth it. I could not go to sleep until it ended and I like the fact that it wasn't your typical ending to a story that we see so often in mostly all movies.

I applaud the writers, actresses, production, actors and everyone involved.

THANK YOU FOR BRINGING THIS STORY TO THE BIG SCREEN! AMAZING.

In the Name of Tradition, Religion and Family

[li0904426 · 8/10 · 22 July 2023]

The movie "The Valley of a Thousand Hills" is a beautiful drama set in South Africa and is co-written and directed by Bonie Sithebe. It follows the journey of two young women from a conservative village who are faced with the dilemma of choosing between adhering to their family's wishes or risking everything for the sake of true love.

The film centers on the intolerance of free love in the name of tradition, family, and religion in a very conservative Zulu village that can easily extrapolate to any region of the world. The movie explores LGBTQ+ prejudice in a simple and direct way and makes us question the number of unhappy and hurtful marriages, simply because they feel pressured to follow society's rules. It's regrettable that some individuals decide to live a life of unhappiness and discontentment simply because they love someone of the same gender.