A romantic film poles away in quality from 'chick-flick' output...

Relationship films are a tricky business. There have been the classics such as Annie Hall and When Harry Met Sally, and there have been many, many flops (did anyone mention Gigli…?).

If Woody Allen asked 'where did the screw-up come?' in his romance with Diane Keaton, and Nora Ephron mused whether sex would ruin a close friendship, then Blue Valentine, starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, offers a fresh perspective on what has recently become a tired genre.

In fact, its link with those two films is not so much a question of theme as one of structure. In his first feature film for 12 years, director Derek Cianfrance takes us back and forth between two periods of an emotionally charged relationship, contrasting the highs and lows and asking whether there is such a thing as love at first sight, and if so can it sustain itself over a lifetime.

Gosling plays Dean, a happy-go-lucky college dropout who takes a manual job for a furniture removal company. His alter-ego, identified by a receding hairline, is an alcoholic stuck in an abusive relationship with his wife Cindy (played by Michelle Williams). Kept together by the love they have for their daughter, and with the romance almost fizzled out, we observe Dean’s attempts to rekindle their marriage, whilst intermittently flicking back and forth between their early, love-struck courtship.

"This is a film that avoids the depressing nature of Leaving Las Vegas but is able to offer up real and gritty highs and lows without giving way to familiar clichés"

The idea of contrasting past and present is nothing new in film, but here it is pulled off with tremendous verve as the interlinking sequences provide many subtleties of character and plot that reappear in a different guise - whether it be a particular song or former boyfriend.

There is a huge amount of realism in Blue Valentine, which is rare for a modern love story, despite its unconventional nature. As such, the build-up is organic, and there are a couple of tense scenes which for the most part manage to avoid the destructive influence of melodrama and remain particularly affecting. Huge credit should go to Gosling and Williams, both deservedly recognised in the Golden Globe nominations, who carry the whole film on very able shoulders. Their relationship feels as real as the romance in most cheesy rom-coms feels fake. This is a film that avoids the depressing nature of Leaving Las Vegas but is able to offer up real and gritty highs and lows without giving way to familiar clichés.

Blue Valentine is a film I can't rate highly enough. With the cinemas focusing so much now on multi-dimensional fantasy fare, generic comedies, and action adventures, it is important that contemporary reality has its place in modern culture. Whilst it is unlikely to become a classic due to its uncompromising nature, no matter whether you are single, married, or other, this is a story you will love at first sight.

Blue Valentine goes on release in the UK today.

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