He's referring to a cheesy motel room rented for a romantic getaway with his wife, Cindy, played by Michelle Williams.
But he also could be talking about their marriage. Dean and Cindy are undeniably struck by Cupid's arrow, but it tears a painful gash in both of them.
Gosling and Williams have the most palpable chemistry of any screen couple this year, never striking a false note in this achingly tender tale of a love that implodes before our eyes.
Dean is a sweet man who didn't finish high school, but he has far more intelligence than that fact would imply. Cindy wants to be a doctor, but her romantic life derails her ambition.
When Dean says to Cindy, "Let's be a family," Williams' eyes convey a complicated expression that is at once terrified, hopeful and relieved. Barely 30, these are consummate actors giving masterful performances.
Director Derek Cianfrance brilliantly charts the trajectory of their relationship by cross-cutting over a half-dozen years, chronicling intimate details, prosaic moments and devastating epiphanies.
In a just world, this bracingly honest exploration will not be overshadowed by the NC-17 rating originally given, before it was changed to an R, by the Motion Picture Association of America. To diminish this poignant film by focusing on a few graphic scenes — all contextual and never gratuitous — would be glaringly unfair.
"I never want to be like my parents," Cindy tells her grandmother (a pitch-perfect Jen Jones), whom she regularly visits. "I know they must have loved each other at one time. Did they just get it all out of the way before they had me?"
Cianfrance shoots with a naturalism that intensifies the story's authenticity, blending blurry images and sharp details. As each scene juxtaposes or blends with the one before, a simple story reveals its complexity. A despairing stab at lovemaking segues into the first joyous one; a passionate kiss at the height of their relationship switches to a bittersweet embrace at its depths.
The screenplay is almost like a short story. Symbolism appears in song lyrics, hotel names and incidental visuals. In a key scene, Dean spots Cindy riding on his bus, approaches her and ignites their romance. The camera pulls back to reveal a thin rainbow in the background. Ambient sounds like a rumbling train and an insistently ringing phone lend almost a documentary realism.
Time shifts are accomplished by modifying the characters' appearances. The younger Dean is bearded, with a hopeful expression. Just a few years into their marriage, he looks markedly different. It's not merely his physical transformation — receding hairline, mustache and glasses — that stand out. He looks worn out by unhappiness. His playful antics with their preschool-age daughter, Frankie (a wonderful Faith Wladyka), have a forced exuberance.
Cindy's physical evolution is more subtle. She goes from dreamy and open-faced to scowling.
Dean and Cindy fell in love with a natural ease. The alienation of their affections happens less smoothly. Dean has developed a volatile temper, and Cindy, once lighthearted, is a scold. Their marriage has become a heartbreaking dance of reaching out, occasionally connecting, but more often feeling rebuffed. Affection and anger vie for dominance. It's one step forward, three steps back.
During one of the sweetest scenes in their courtship, Dean plays a ukulele and sings in a goofy voice You Always Hurt the One You Love while Cindy half dances. The choice of tunes was not left to chance.
They first spot each other at a convalescent home. Cindy is visiting her grandmother, and Dean is helping to relocate an elderly man. Dean scrawls a tersely romantic message on the back of his business card: "Give me a chance."
The heart of this beautifully mesmerizing film comes down to that simple entreaty. Love is all about chance.
Blue Valentine
* * * * (out of four)
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