The Last Valley

I stumbled upon this movie by pure chance on Saturday afternoon. It's a historical drama set during the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648). The story takes place in a tiny, secluded valley somewhere in Germany that has managed to dodge the war for about twenty years thanks to a mix of sheer luck and some pretty terrible roads. Everything changes when a mercenary unit led by a German Captain (Michael Caine—who is absolutely impressive) happens upon the valley. However, a philosopher and refugee named Vogel (Omar Sharif) tries to convince the Captain that he and his men should just spend the winter in the village instead of looting, raping the women, and murdering the locals.

The film was good enough that, the moment I saw Michael Caine (who—with that German accent, neat hair, and armor—is one of the best "lawful evil" villains I've ever seen on screen), I decided to record it on video.

You have Protestant and Catholic fanaticism on one side and extreme calculation and cynicism on the other. War, love, betrayal... the movie has it all. Plus, it’s eerily realistic and cynical regarding human nature, regardless of what someone believes in.

The reason I’m starting this thread isn't just to see if anyone else has watched it, but rather to ask: how does it end? I had to leave the house, and my tape ran out of space right during the final few minutes: The Captain heads off on a military campaign. The villagers no longer want Vogel in the settlement, but a beautiful local girl refuses to leave him alone, despite his warnings that she'd be safer staying put. The two of them flee together over the mountains, trying to evade the villagers who have set an ambush for any soldiers who might stumble back into the valley. Just as Vogel and the woman think they’re about to be caught, the Captain appears at the top of the hill through the fog. Unaware of anything, he rides along the forest path while the villagers close in on him, and then— THERE IS NO MORE TAPE LEFT! SOMEONE PLEASE PUT A NEW ONE IN!

HELP MEEEEEE! 😲

"The Last Valley"

Man, I saw that flick ages ago... honestly not sure if I can even help you out there. Michael Caine ends up getting taken out by that guy with the terrible haircut—you know, the one he basically gambled his wife on? And then Omar Sharif just leaves the valley at the end.
The movie actually got some decent reviews back in the day for the cinematography and how it handled the characters' psyches, mostly because it really leaned into the hypocrisy found within two different religious factions. But let's be real: the runtime, the slow pacing, and that super controversial subject matter for its era... all of that kept it from becoming a true cinematic classic. If it wasn't for the acting—which, let's face it, was lightyears ahead of its time—we probably wouldn't even be talking about this thing today.

If my memory isn't totally shot from all these years (it’s been a minute since I last sat through this one) spoiler Caine Caine ends up fighting for some count he's loyal to, and almost the entire group of mercenaries gets wiped out in the fray; while he's away, some villagers kill off his lover, then Caine crawls back to the village on his deathbed, and since he can't see a thing, Sharif pulls a fast one by having some local girl pretend to be his lady in those final moments, which Caine falls for completely, leaving Sharif looking like some kind of saint 😉

The Captain heads off to battle. His Eric is accused of witchcraft by the local populace and burned at the stake. Having backed the losing side in this chaotic conflict, he loses his entire crew and limps back toward the valley, only to stumble right into the Sheriff's ambush. Meanwhile, Omar S. realizes his time in the village has run out; he’s no longer the local favorite, and the blonde woman is looking to move on with him. Just as they attempt to bypass the Sheriff's trap, they cross paths with the dying Captain on his descent. He passes away under the delusion that the blonde belongs to him. Omar makes his escape, leaving the woman behind with her childhood sweetheart.
A solid film.

casualotter21 said:<snip>

I watched it.

I appreciated the realism... or maybe not strictly realism, but there wasn't any romanticized nonsense cluttering the plot. Whenever I hear the term "period drama," my mind immediately jumps to some old Errol Flynnov flick. Nothing against Errol, but this one was a pleasant surprise.
Especially the portrayal of the Catholic priest. A total lunatic with all those "You're going to burn in Hell!!!" outbursts. Reminds me of my own priest. 😁

And Michael Caine's German accent is pure genius!

Thanks for the info! Honestly, Robert De Niro absolutely kills it in that movie. 👍 👍