My Bloody Valentine (2009)

Tom returns to his hometown on the tenth anniversary of the Valentine's night massacre that claimed the lives of 22 people. Instead of a homecoming, however, Tom finds himself suspected of committing the murders, and it seems like his old flame is the only one will believes he's innocent.

Director:

Patrick Lussier

Writers:

Todd Farmer (screenplay), Zane Smith (screenplay),

Stars:

Jensen Ackles, Jaime King, Kerr Smith

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jensen Ackles	...	Tom Hanniger
Jaime King	...	Sarah Palmer
Kerr Smith	...	Axel Palmer
Betsy Rue	...	Irene
Edi Gathegi	...	Deputy Martin
Tom Atkins	...	Sheriff Jim Burke
Kevin Tighe	...	Ben Foley
Megan Boone	...	Megan
Karen Baum	...	Deputy Ferris
Joy de la Paz	...	Rosa
Marc Macaulay	...	Riggs
Todd Farmer	...	Frank the Trucker
Jeff Hochendoner	...	Red
Bingo O'Malley	...	Officer Hinch
Liam Rhodes	...	Michael

Storyline

In the mining town of Harmony, a drilling accident is caused by the son of the owner, Tom Hanniger. The mine collapses, burying six miners alive. The rescue team finds only Harry Warden alive, but in coma, and the other miners murdered by his pickax, and they conclude that Harry killed them to save oxygen for himself. On Valentine's Day, Harry awakes from his coma in the local hospital, and he kills twenty-two people, including a group of teenagers that are partying in the mine. Harry is killed by the deputy, but the only survivors are Tom Hanniger, his girlfriend Sarah, their friend Axel Palmer and his girlfriend Irene. Ten years later, Tom returns to Harmony after the death of his father. Tom has decided to sell the Hanniger Mine, and finds that Sarah has married Axel, who is now the local sheriff, and they have a son named Noah. On Valentine's Day, Harry Warden also returns, seeking revenge against those that had escaped his pickax in the past, and Tom is accused by Axel and other ...

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Plot Keywords:

mine | valentine | valentine's day | miner | coma | 

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Taglines:

On January 16, Get Your Heart Broken.

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for graphic brutal horror violence and grisly images throughout, some strong sexuality, graphic nudity and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 January 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

My Bloody Valentine 3-D

Filming Locations:

Kittanning, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£1,337,613 (UK) (16 January 2009)

Gross:

$51,527,787 (USA) (6 March 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lionsgate

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first two characters killed on screen are named Jason and Michael, an homage to characters from the Friday the 13th and Halloween series where the killers are non-speaking. A direct reference to the films is how they die - trademark features of the characters.

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Goofs

When Jim Burke tells Deputy Ferris that "He's here, inside the house." it is not made clear how Jim knows this.

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Quotes

Michael: Jason, is that you?

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Crazy Credits

After the credits, Harry Warden emerges from a tunnel, peers into the camera then strikes the screen with a pickaxe.

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Connections

Referenced in Scream 4 (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Properly"
Written by David Vanacore and Kenneth Douglas Berry
Performed by Kenneth Douglas Berry
Courtesy of David Vanacore Music
By Arrangement with Lions Gate Music Publishing LLC

User Reviews

3D is not this slasher movie's only saving grace.....

Years ago, in the town of Harmony, a horrible mining accident occurred, due in part to the negligence of young Tom Hannigar. Five men were found dead and one, Harry Warden, in a coma. It soon came to light that Harry Warden killed those men to conserve his own air supply. On valentine's day, Harry mysteriously awakens from his coma and goes on a killing spree and ultimately met his end at the hands of the town sheriff, But not before confronting the main characters Axel(Kerr Smith), Sarah(Jamie King) and her boyfriend Tom Hannigar(Jensen Ackles) who still harbors the guilt of causing the accident in the first place. Years pass, teenagers become adults and have families. Suddenly, mysterious killings start to happen again with a very familiar M.O; killed by a man in a mining outfit, similar to Harry Warden's. Axel and Sarah are now married but there is trouble brewing in paradise. To complicate matters, Tom Hannigar returned to Harmony and where he goes, the mysterious killings follow.

Is some deranged copycat killer out to make a name for himself by repeating the tragedy from 10 years ago? Or has Harry Warden come back from the grave to exact his revenge on Tom Hannigar and everyone close to him?

For the first time, i surprise even myself by saying that i liked the story. Or at least i was mildly hooked by it. Usually stories in such slasher horror remakes are bland and shoved aside in order to focus more on silly teenage shenanigans and gruesome killings. The story of My Bloody Valentine plays with the "mystery" element very well, throwing many red herrings and misleading little clues as to the identity of the killer. Literally everyone is a suspect and this film keeps you guessing up until the final reveal. There is even a small(though weak, but passable) attempt at a tragic love triangle between the 3 main characters which ties in rather well with the whole "valentine" theme of the movie.

The characters are at least more bearable than the usual slasher movie fare and easier to get into, emotionally. The acting may be a little stiff at times but i did not expect much good acting from horror genre movies.

A mystery story would only work one time around(once you know the ending, the mystery element kinda ends there), so is it worth watching this movie again on DVD or blu ray??? I give it a resounding yes thanks to.......you guessed it, the 3D gimmick.

It has been said many times over that the 3D gimmick coupled with some fresh new ways to kill off characters is the highlight of this movie. I never knew one could get so creative with a pickaxe and shovel. The gore itself is not gratuitous but the kills are shockingly gruesome and some of them rather unique.(my favorite is when the killer shoved a shovel into a girl's mouth and cleaved her face in half). Really must hand it to director Patrick Lussier(also directed Dracula 2000) for his clear straightforward directing style which keeps the usual frantic cuts to a minimum and allows the violence to be played out in its full gory.....i mean glory.

Of course, what would a slasher film be without some mandatory nudity? Thankfully, the nudity is played more for laughs than to titillate here as a dumb blond runs around a motel and car park, completely buck naked in the middle of the night, trying to confront her boyfriend and then trying to escape the killer.

In retrospect, My Bloody Valentine actually plays out like an extremely violent episode of Scooby Doo complete with surprise ending and unmasking. There were some issues with the overall "feel" of the non-3D portions of the film which felt cheap and at times looked no better than a made-for-TV miniseries. Slasher genre fans are sure to love this and casual movie viewer can easily immerse themselves in the well plotted mystery and suspense.

My Bloody Valentine is a surprisingly fresh take on the slasher genre. It takes familiar elements and adds a new twist to it. This movie among other recent slasher remakes is like a breath of fresh air after spending hours in a gas mask. Definitely one of the better ones in the market. Maybe there is hope for the slasher genre yet.