'Echo Valley' Review: Stellar Performances Can't Save This Uneven Apple TV+ Thriller
- Dan Bremner
- Jun 15
- 3 min read
By Dan Bremner - June 15, 2025
Diving into this blind, knowing only that Sydney Sweeney and Julianne Moore were headlining, I braced for another Apple TV+ streaming original, often a mixed bag compared to their stellar TV slate.
What is 'Echo Valley' about?
Kate (Julianne Moore), a reclusive farm-dweller, finds her quiet life shattered when her daughter Claire (Sydney Sweeney) arrives, blood-soaked and terrified. What unfolds is a familiar story of maternal sacrifice, laced with addiction and grief.
Echo Valley stumbles into the crowded drama-thriller arena, wielding a trashy airport paperback vibe that’s neither ground-breaking nor disastrous. This middling tale of a mother’s desperate love for her troubled daughter leans hard on its stellar leads but buckles under a predictable, messy plot.
The heart of this film lies in Moore and Sweeney’s gripping portrayal of Kate and Claire, a mother-daughter duo frayed by years of pain. Moore’s weary resolve and Sweeney’s volatile desperation collide in scenes that crackle with emotional heft, especially during a wrenching confrontation over Claire’s addiction. Their chemistry elevates the clichés in moments, like tearful home video montages of happier times into something almost heartfelt, though the script doesn’t always earn their effort.
Beyond the leads, a solid supporting cast rounds up an array of characters along for this thriller. Domhnall Gleeson’s slimy drug dealer drips menace in unsettling ways, while Fiona Shaw’s steely matriarch and Kyle MacLachlan’s exhausted ex-husband to Kate lend gravitas to the small-town stakes. Though the script’s formulaic twists are unpredictable yet oddly rote, leave them underused, as if the story’s too busy chasing silly twists to flesh out their roles.
Director Michael Pearce, known for Beast (A fantastically overlooked indie thriller) taut psychological edge, tries to weave a moody tapestry here, blending family drama with thriller beats. His rural Pennsylvania setting, backed by Ridley Scott’s Scott Free Productions, looks lush with rolling fields and weathered barns evoking a scenic, lived-in dread. Yet, the film’s tone wobbles, never fully meshing its introspective grief with bursts of tension. Pearce’s intent to probe human bonds feels half-baked, a step back from Beast’s tighter grip.
Where Echo Valley falters most is its inability to dig deep into its themes. Addiction and grief bubble up, but the script skims their surface, opting for soap-opera twists over nuance. An unpredictable plot turn sends the story careening, sometimes thrillingly, sometimes absurdly, yet they land with an unsatisfying thud, leaving loose ends and a finale that feels more like an eye-roller than a satisfying culmination. It’s compelling in spurts but never cohesive. The film’s bursts of tension and strong performances hint at what could’ve been, but its disjointed execution keeps it firmly in the middle of the pack, neither soaring as a family drama nor gripping as a psychological chiller.
This isn’t the bold leap Apple TV+ needed to rival their TV triumphs like Severance. Moore and Sweeney deserve better than a story that feels like it was churned out for a quick streaming scroll. Still, for a lazy night, it’s a passable diversion, buoyed by its leads and scenic polish, even if it’s destined to fade from memory like a trashy paperback you read half-drunk on sunbed abroad several years ago.
Is 'Echo Valley' worth watching on Apple TV+?
Echo Valley is a middling drama-thriller, saved by Julianne Moore and Sydney Sweeney’s strong performances but sunk by a clichéd, unsatisfying plot that veers into silly territory. Its sharp sheen on Apple TV can’t mask a story that’s as forgettable as it is occasionally engaging.
'Echo Valley' is streaming now on Apple TV+
Want more film reviews from Apple TV+? Check out more content on our website Film Focus Online!
