Val

Val

The life you live is the story you tell.

Directed by Ting Poo, Leo Scott

Produced by A24, IAC Films

2021109 min7.2 / 10

An intimate, self-curated portrait of an artist's life built from decades of personal footage, balancing vulnerability about illness and struggle with affection for craft and family.

For over 40 years Val Kilmer, one of Hollywood’s most mercurial and/or misunderstood actors has been documenting his own life and craft through film and video. He has amassed thousands of hours of footage, from 16mm home movies made with his brothers, to time spent in iconic roles for blockbuster movies like Top Gun, The Doors, Tombstone, and Batman Forever. This raw, wildly original and unflinching documentary reveals a life lived to extremes and a heart-filled, sometimes hilarious look at what it means to be an artist and a complex man.

Questions people ask

  • Is Val violent? Barely. Less violent than 86% of films.

  • Is Val scary? Barely. Less frightening than 76% of films.

  • Is Val sad? Yes. More sad than 75% of films.

  • Is Val easy watching? Somewhat. More comforting than 71% of films.

  • Does Val end with hope? Somewhat. More hopeful than 62% of films.

These describe how the film comes across, measured across the whole film and compared with other well-known films. They are not a content list — nothing here was counted or checked scene by scene, so for age-suitability or specific content use a classification board or a dedicated content-warning service.

54/ 100

Cinnamon Score

How much this film gives you that nothing else will, and whether it delivers.

Familiar shape, done well.

Rarity45

How unlike any other film this one feels

Surprise45

How much more it delivers than it promises

Love75

How much audiences actually like it

The highest scores in the catalogue →

Ensemble

Everything like Val, and what each one shares →

Like Val

Nearest across the full emotional profile.

Same Mood as Val

Nearest on what's most distinctive about this one.

Like Val, But Darker

Similar, pushed toward heavier and more intense.

Like Val, But Lighter

Similar, pushed toward warmer and easier.

Like Val, But Less Popular

Same territory, far fewer people have seen it.

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