'My Bloody Valentine 3D' is a remake of the 1981 slasher movie of the same name. As far as horror remakes go, this one is a cut above average. It takes the same basic story and characters from the original and pumps up the gore and horror movie themes. To be clear, nobody is going to watch this movie for filmmaking subtly or craft. If you're watching this, you expect to be entertained by some suspenseful horror sequences and a splattering of 3D.
'My Bloody Valentine' takes place in a small mining town called Harmony. We learn in the start of the film that years back a terrible accident occurred, causing the death of several miners. It was later determined that they were murdered by a fellow worker (who happened to slip into a coma right afterward). The introduction of the movie features the main characters in their teenage years making a classic horror mistake. They all have the bright idea to go hang out in the mine where the deaths took place. To make things worse, they decide that an evening in the old mines wouldn't be complete without a few beers. Of course, the murderer wakes from his coma, massacres the hospital, and returns to his mine to off a few teenagers before being killed by the police (or so we would think).
The movie starts 10 years after that incident. The town is still dealing with the effects of the bloody murders. Outsiders continue to visit the town on the anniversary just to get a glimpse of where it all happened. The main characters appear to have moved on from the bloody events of that night, Axel (Kerr Smith), who is the town sheriff, is married to Sarah (Jaime King). The story essentially centers on Tom Hanniger (Jensen Ackles) who during the introduction we learn was dating Sarah who is now married to Axel. Tom disappeared the night of the murders and was never heard from again, but now he is back in town to sell the mine where it all happened, his family owns it and he wants nothing to do with it. Of course, upon his return, the murders start right back up again.
This film has pretty much everything you could want from a horror movie. It features extremely generic characters that could probably be transplanted into any horror movie. There are plenty of the "don't go in there" moments, and of course, what kind of horror movie would this be without the token screaming girls?
This is really the definition of an average movie. It doesn't try to reinvent the horror genre; it just plays it safe and goes with the formulas that are proven to entertain the masses. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, it won't require much thinking on your part, and it will leave you entertained. The added element of 3D gimmick shots also adds a nice touch. There are a few pop out of the screen into your face moments that will make you jump and this makes things all the more enjoyable.
For anyone who is a fan of cheesy horror, check this one out, you should be entertained!
'My Bloody Valentine' arrives on 3D Blu-ray as Lionsgate's first release to the new format and the second release for 'My Bloody Valentine' overall. Last year, this film was released in the old anaglyph 3D format with mixed results, at times the 3D jumped off the screen, but overall it was a gimmick. I am pleased to report that this release leaves the old paper glasses version as a distant memory.
This was a release of highs and lows. At times we get reference qualify 3D while other times we get a blurry image with frequent ghosting. First off, here are some of the good things we get from this release. Hands down, the daytime footage featured in this movie is some of the best I have seen in a 3D movie (judging by a very limited catalog). The feeling of depth was very realistic, at times it felt as if I was looking over the shoulder of a character on screen, seeing what they were seeing. Outdoor objects like people in the background or buildings in the town also felt like they were far away from the camera. Detail was also excellent; objects appeared to have realistic coloring and texture. It never felt like I was looking at pop-up book characters like I did at times during my viewing of 'Clash of the Titans.' The elements of depth, texture, and color all combine to create a very pleasant viewing experience during the daytime.
Now, here are some of the negatives from this release. Unfortunately all the good that was seen during bright daytime footage disappeared during darker night scenes. Objects appear to be out of focus at times and are also frequently partnered with ghosted images. Speaking to the focus of image quality, I didn't like the effect of the camera looking through a chain link fence. This shot was used a few times throughout the movie and I found it to be very distracting. Clarity was a big problem in the darker scenes, images seemed to lose their sense of depth and colors lost their realistic feel. I also found black levels to be very poor; it looked like more of a chalky black rather than an inky black. Again, ghosting was a major problem for darker images. It seemed every time an image came close to the camera it lost focus and ghosting kicked in. This was most apparent during the intentional 3D gimmick shots of the film; examples include the pick axe being thrown towards the camera and one scene where a shotgun is aimed directly at the camera. As these objects came closer they started to lose focus and gain a ghosted image.
Overall, this is a solid enough presentation. To be clear, 'My Bloody Valentine' is a total 3D gimmick movie and it doesn't try to hide it. Most of the effects fit into the story and are actually pretty fun (who doesn't like seeing a pick axe flying out of their TV?). Aside from gimmicks, you get excellent daytime footage and subpar nighttime footage that needs some work.
'My Bloody Valentine' features the same DTS-HD 7.1 mix that was included with the previous release, and just like that one, this one is equally excellent.
Your speakers are going to get a good workout from this movie, surround effects are almost always present and do a nice job drawing you into the movie. I also found the use of deep bass effects equally impressive. I enjoyed the use of bass to level out the low end of the chilling token horror movie shrieking sound effects during pop out and scare you moments. I also found the spoken dialogue to be very clear and audible. There were a few times when I found dialogue seemed to be overpowered by LFE effects but overall it was very good. This soundtrack did an excellent job combined with the 3D to create an immersive experience.
'My Bloody Valentine 3D offers up a few supplements that have been recycled from the previous Blu-ray release. Here is what you can expect from this release.
'My Bloody Valentine 3D' is a good popcorn flick that fans of horror movies should enjoy. It's filled with blood, murder, cheesy acting, and a dash of nudity. On top of a solid popcorn flick you also have a solid 3D presentation with excellent daytime image quality, a very good DTS-HD 7.1 soundtrack, and a handful of extras. Now we just need to work on that darker stuff and we will be in business! For the first live-action 3D release to hit the U.S. market, this will serve as a nice start. It's a movie that was shot in 3D and actually transfers pretty well to the home viewing experience. Now we just need more like it (will 'Avatar' please stand up).
This is how exclusive releases should be done, pick a retailer and exclusively release the movie through them. People would be much happier and more TVs would probably be sold. For people looking to expand their 3D library, I would recommend taking a look at this one. You just have to decide if you think its worth giving Best Buy 35 bucks for this retailer exclusive.
Portions of this review also appear in our coverage of Dunkirk on Blu-ray. This post features unique Vital Disc Stats, Video, and Final Thoughts sections.
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