| My Bloody Valentine (1981) Dir: George Mihalka Cast: Paul Kelman, Lori Hallier, Neal Affleck, Keith Knight, Peter Cowper, Alf Humphreys, Don Francks Rated R, Approx: 91 minutes Paramount Pictures Video and DVD |
| The slasher explosion of the very late 70's and 80's was an excellent time for the genre in my opinion. Growing up admist the sea of masked madmen stalking and rampaging their way through various calendar events and summer camps is something that I'll never forget, and watching a new slasher film from the 1980s is something that never fails to provoke excitment within myself. I'm well aware that older genre fans tend to shun the 1980s slahser subgenre and while I can understand why, I can't bring myself to agree. Whereas older fans had their own introductions to the gerne, be it the 'golden age' era of the Universal monsters, the nature runs amok romps of the 1950's and 60's, the rise of Hammer studios and the invasion of Godzilla to name a few, my personal infatuation for the genre began the first time I watched Jason slaughter a house full of teenagers. From that point on I was hooked and it only took one film before I suddenly had to see them all. Luckily there was no shortage of slasher films about the time I was attempting to satisfy my macabre curiosity-much to the chagrin of both my parents and teachers at school. Growing up, My Bloody Valentine had to be one of my very favorite non-Jason, non-Michael slasher films. Released in 1981 when the slasher boom was gaining momentum, this exceptional bloodbath never fails to engross me. Admittedly this amounts to little more than a Friday the 13th variant, but it's best to look at slasher films on their own merits. This one revels in what are (sadly) now identified as a bunch of cliches, the ones in which every smartass casual movie goer now knows about (we can applaud Scream for that one), and doesn't hesitate to point out. That said, this movie is a great deal of fun for slasher fans and in all honesty isn't going to appeal to very many people outside of the slasher circle anyway so I'm not going to bother adressing anyone else in this writing. |
| Twenty Years ago in the miningtown of Valentine's Bluffs, a horrible accident occured at Hanniger Mine essentially because a few irresponsible parties had ditched work to attend the Valentine's Day dance. The survivor of the accident, miner Harry Warden, now a vengeful lunatic, murdered the guilty parties and warned the town never to have another Valentine's party. As fate would have it, the twenty year anniversary of the tragedy is when the mayor decides that Valentine's Bluffs is ready to have another Valentine's dance. It's not long before a chocolate box stuffed with a bloody human heart arrives signaling a final warning and as the police launch a search for Harry Warden, who's obviously returned to exact further vengeance, several mine workers sneak off to the mine to throw their own Valentine's party. As the private party commences, someone shows up with a pickaxe to grind into the party goers making the night a Valentine's Day they'll always remember. |
| What surely sounds like something bland and genreric is actually very well done and effective. Harry Warden is an extremely menacing madman, decked out in miner's garb complete with mask, hardhat and pickaxe, whenever the killer shows up, so does the tension. Most of the real suspense is saved for the final third, but early on are some excellent sequences as well, most notably the murder in the laundromat. When the action moves into the mine, My Bloody Valentine especially comes into its own with several awesome moments. Director George Mihalka uses the mine setting to maximum effect and without spoiling everything, the scene in which the killer hulks toward his prey savagely smashing all mine lights with his pick enveloping the path in that of total darkness is pretty damn creepy. Another unique aspect of this one is the attention paid to its main characters, T.J. (Kelman), Sarah (Hallier) and Axel (Affleck). There's a love triangle between the three, both men vieing for the affections of the woman, maybe it may bore some, but it's really well done in regards to the whole film, not to mention carried out with some great performances by the three leads. The bulking up of its major characters help lend the film some emotional weight-especially during the climax and by the film's end, things are made all the more interesting as a result of this. |
| Unfortunately, My Bloody Valentine suffered greatly at the hands of the MPAA prior to release as the vast majority of the gore was removed from the film in a way very similar to that of the same year's Friday the 13th part 2. This is stuff that could've only helped enhance this film, for the thought of a suspenseful, well written slahser film with gruesome depictions of death featured throughout is enough to make a slasher fan giddy. It's a shame that the bozos at the MPAA felt the need to trim most of the grue from the film, for fans will probably never get the chance to witness this one in all its bloody glory. |
| As much as I love the genre, one has to admit that no slasher film of the 1980s could be complete without the obligatory moments of silliness. We're treated to a non-evolving subplot involving the town's police chief, as he tries to learn exactly what became of Harry Warden over his twenty years of silence. This plot thread oddly enough never really goes any place as we're left to wonder exactly happened to the murderer at the film's end regarding those twenty years. In addition to the vanishing plot thread, we're treated to a brief flashback toward the end of the film which was intended to be expository and disturbing yet ultimately fails to evoke those feelings. Instead, it comes off as extremely hokey and laughable, and while a bit marring, the film recovers with not only an excellent ending, but with a catchy folky song sung over the end credits pretaining to the events that have plagued Hanniger Mine for twenty years. It's a great way to end the film and is perhaps my favorite wrap song ever!! |
| Director Mihalka established himself as a talented filmmaker with this film, crafting a successful slasher film isn't easy, but MBV pulls it off to a tee. It's quite a shame however, that Mihalka never got to go ahead with his My Bloody Valentine part 2, not only does the film leave things wide open for a sequel, but is one of the few slashers that could've stood to have another entry, for it seemed that there was more story to tell. As it stands now, a bit over twenty years later, My Bloody Valentine works on more levels than it doesn't. Often suspenseful, a tad creepy, a wee-bit silly and always engaging, this is a must see for all slasher fans. Growing up with slasher films got me into the genre, but for me, the vicious circle has closed. When I look at 90's slashers, they don't hold the charm or fun that those of the 80's did. They may have the empty sleekness, but those of the 1980s will always have the heart (at least before it's torn out with a pickaxe!). This is definately how its done!! |
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| Matt's Rating: ****1/2 (out of 5) |
| Reviewed by Matt Serafini 06/02/02 |