AllMovie

Though filmed in Oregon, this Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation is set in the American South, several months after the end of WW2. Decorated war hero Noah (Chris Klein) returns home to find his parents dead, his brother Travis (Jackson Rathbone) in prison, and his family farm in the hands of strangers. With literally nothing to keep him in his home town, Noah embarks on a personal odyssey, using his remarkable fishing skills to stay alive. In the course of his perambulations, he meets a mysterious old codger named Hoke (Robert Prosky), who claims a gift for "seein' the other side." Hoke guides Noah to another small town "over the ridge", where he is immediately made welcome by the townsfolk, and before long has become a local legend by virtue of his fishing prowess. He has also bonded with a lonely war widow named Eleanor (Gretchen Mol), and with a fatherless mute boy named Matthew (Zach Mills). But when tragedy strikes again, will the disillusioned Noah desert his new home, to say nothing of his new friends and loved ones? Throughout the latter half of the story, Noah's fate is inexorably linked with that of a huge bass which has eluded capture for years--and which has transformed the town into a mecca for fishing enthusiasts throughout the nation. Made for television and first seen over the CBS network on January 28, 2007, Valley of Light is based on the novel by Terry McKay.