My Bloody Valentine 3D

[pox1169]

I loved the original as a kid and found it on DVD not too long ago but this looks kind of interesting for a remake.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1179891/

[Darth Tanner]

I've never seen the original, but I have to say that I'm pretty excited about this remake. Even if it does turn out to be bad, how can you pass up a slasher flick in 3-D?

I've always wanted to see FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 3 in 3-D but the opportunity never presented itself to me. But that may change if the rumors are true about Paramount releasing a new DVD in 3-D in February to coincide with the release of the F13 remake. In the meantime, this 3-D remake of MBV might be the closest thing. I still might try to see the original first if I can find it.

[steven_millan]

Both the 3-D and knwoing that the fully uncut and unrated version of "My Bloody Valentine" coming to DVD are the only two good merits from the upcoming release of yet another gratuitious remake.

[gothbat]

I've never seen the original and also never seen a 3D movie! Not a fan of remakes but still, maybe this will be the one...

[Chris Slack]

This had good use of 3D but as a movie itself it kind of stunk. If you have any desire to see this do so in a 3D theater.

[Darth Tanner]

This had good use of 3D but as a movie itself it kind of stunk. If you have any desire to see this do so in a 3D theater.

Caught this at an afternoon matinee yesterday, and yes....the 3D effects are VERY impressive. Some of the stuff is pretty subtle while others are "in-your-face" terrific (although that "bullet scene" looked like it was obviously lifted from WANTED). This is indeed some of the best 3D I've ever seen and you can't definitely go wrong by seeing the film this way. My only complaint is that I wish they had used tools other than the pickaxe to utilize the 3D effect. But seeing as it was the primary weapon of choice for the killer in the original as well as this one I guess I can't complain too much. And before anybody asks....NO, there are no nailguns used this time around (which is a real shame as it could have been a cool effect:( ). However, one other memorable kill scene from the original is nicely updated in this version.

As for the movie itself, I won't go as far as to say that it stunk. Sure it may not be the greatest horror flick ever made, but there have been far worse (anybody remember the 2001 film VALENTINE!) Movies like this are not supposed to be known for their intelligence, so I just turned my brain off and enjoyed myself. This was certainly far gorier than the original and the FX were pretty damn cool. It was also nice to see Tom Atkins back on the screen and Jaime King was easy on the eyes:) Plus, when was the last time you saw prolonged frontal nudity in a R-rated movie. Movies before this have done a good job of pushing the envelope in terms of content, but I never imagined it would get THIS far.

The story was nothing to really write home about. Those familiar with the original film may already know the basic premise, but it does provide a few new twists to the plot. I did find the reveal of the killer in this one though to be pretty interesting but somewhat a bit farfetched at the same time. There are also some of those tired cliches that are typical of slasher flicks, but nothing that seriously hurts the movie IMO.

I can't remember having this much fun at a horror film since GRINDHOUSE. Even without the 3D gimmick, I still would have enjoyed it as a movie. But as Chris said it definitely deserves to be seen in 3D if you are near a theater equipped to show it. Otherwise it should still hold up as a decent enough flick in the "flat" version. And I said earlier, there have been far worse movies. I'll take this fun popcorn flick over dreck like CURSED, URBAN LEGEND and VALENTINE anytime. I'm still not sure though if I prefer this to the original.

By all means check it out and tell me what you think. I definitely plan to go back and see this at least one more time in 3D before it leaves town. I'm also really looking forward to Remo's review....assuming he hasn't decided to sit this one out:)

[Remo D]

Put me in the "only in 3D" camp for this one.

MY BLOODY VALENTINE is certainly entitled to an "out" along the lines of "everyone knows it's a slasher film, so don't expect great eart," and it stretches it to the limit. To complain about the violence is ridiculous (had the original film been made today, Paramount probably wouldn't have had to cut a single frame, let alone nine minutes worth)--and the extended nudity is a blatant attempt to not only "deliver the goods" but to bait the hell out of... oh, let's say Mick LaSalle (who didn't review this film but reiterated his plea for all films with gunplay to be rated R in today's paper, claiming that it would solve the entire problem of movie violence causing real life violence)... but I digress. Oh, and this would be as good a place to mention this as anywhere else... as one of the victims bore a superficial resemblance to Stone Cold Steve Austin, I improvised a zinger on the spot: "Austin 3:16 says I just picked your brain!" You heard it here first.

Patrick Lussier and company have an undeniable knack for 3D photography--the "in your face" moments are cringeworthy, but the depth is successfully exploited throughout the non-violent moments as well to the point where the film would not be ruined for audiences forced to see it in 2D (unlike, in my opinion, FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 3, which was--not unjustifiably--obsessed with the gimmick to the point where it took precedence over absolutely anything happening in the film at any time).

But like I said, it's still "3D only" for me as the film itself just doesn't deliver beyond the gimmick. Now, the first fifteen minutes or so are undeniable dynamite--a great blend of hard gore, false scare/real scare interplay, and a meaty role for Tom Atkins... hey, you want to bring back the 80s like everybody else, now THERE'S a name you can count on! Unfortunately, the initial burst of energy wears off quickly, and you're left with a midsection that sags... and sags HORRIBLY. The film continued to LOOK nice in 3D but nearly put me to sleep all the same. The sporadic gore effects continued to work, but I was disappointed that one of the most frustrating cuts from the original (the "shower" effect) was not recreated in all its 3D glory--what a missed opportunity.

And while the film did, at least, avoid the ridiculous "Hey, let's hold another party in the fateful mine shaft!" mentality, it still scored negative points with me by blatantly cheating in an attempt to throw the viewer off track. It's awfully funny--I complimented Patrick Lussier on WHITE NOISE 2, as one of my gripes with the original involved a flashback in which the audience was unequivocally shown something that only later turned out not to have happened at all. And yet he does the same thing here--only worse. No excuses. A master director could have found a way to pull it off WITHOUT cheating and yet without giving the game away.

So--I enjoyed the 3D rush and the unfettered splatter--but that still didn't make this a particularly "good" movie--even for a slasher film.

Oh, and it made over $20 million at the box office this weekend, but considering the scope of its ad campaign I have to wonder how much of a success it really comes down to. Bottom line--it had its ass handed to it by PAUL BLART: MALL COP.

The most entertaining part of the entire theatrical experience? The CRANK 2 trailer at the beginning!

Okay, bring on the FRIDAY THE 13TH remake...

[Chris Slack]

P
The most entertaining part of the entire theatrical experience? The CRANK 2 trailer at the beginning!

Heck yes, I am really looking forward to that.

[Kimberly]

Heck yes, I am really looking forward to that.

As am I! Never did see the first one, but the trailer was so over the top... that is one that I won't be missing!

As for My Bloody Valentine... it was what it was. I didn't hate, nor did I love it. It was fun and silly and a nice way to kill a little time at the theater. I'm with Chuck on this one, I just turned off my brain and enjoyed.

Oh and any thoughts on the LHotL trailer?

[Darth Tanner]

So are you saying that the LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT remake is a reality and getting ready to come out?!? I've heard rumors for awhile that it was in production, but I had no idea it was coming out so soon. And no, I didn't see the trailer for that but I did see a bunch of others: UNBORN (skipping it!), UNINVITED (maybe), UNDERWORLD 3 (eh..never saw part 2), , JONAS BROTHERS IN CONCERT (barf...douchebags!), CRANK 2 (fuck yes!) and of course the FRIDAY THE 13TH remake (definitely!). One thing I thought was interesting about the F13 trailer was they copied the "numbers" gimmick from the trailer for the original film. Pretty neat.

Kim - I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed MBV 3D. Yeah it ain't high art or anything great, just a fun ride and I was real happy with the experience. I did share some of the same problems that Remo did, but in the end it didn't stop me from enjoying the film a little more (even more so considering the current competition out there). However, I do need to see it again as I heard that I missed a bit after the closing credits. It fucking annoys me when they do that stuff all the time....I guess now I'll have to make it a point to sit through all the credits:)

And yes, CRANK is highly recommended viewing. You should definitely see it as soon as possible. I'm also looking forward to the sequel when it comes out.

[Remo D]

Garrett Dillahunt. Fellow from THE 4400 and TERMINATOR TV series--neither of which I've actually followed. He's Krug.

And unless it's completely misleading, the trailer indicates that Mari actually LIVES in this version (??!!)

Oh, I'm sure it will try to be intense, and it won't be one of those PG-13 wimp jobs, but I'm just not seeing it--not from what I saw in that trailer, and not from my sense of history. This will NOT be a landmark--this will be an easy cash-in.

I WANT to be wrong, make no mistake--and that title is so vital that I WILL have to check out the remake, like it or not. But if Dillahunt doesn't live up to the role of Krug, I know EXACTLY what I'm going to say. But I'm saving it.

Oh, by the way, was I the only one who got stuck with the trailer for something called A HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT? Hey, it's based on a true story, and ghosts show up in mirrors, and there's a door you're not supposed to open, and the plonking soundtrack got my buddy Mad Mark Mak to say "They don't need an exorcist, they need a piano tuner!" and when the trailer was over, even though the announcer didn't actually say so, we both said "Rated PG-13" at the same time and laughed, and we looked it up and it really is PG-13, what a surprise, and it might be even better than AN AMERICAN HAUNTING........ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

[Darth Tanner]

Oh, by the way, was I the only one who got stuck with the trailer for something called A HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT?

No Remo, you weren't the only one. I forgot that's another trailer that I saw in addition to the ones I listed above (along with one for some animated 3-D movie that's name escapes me now). I wasn't really grabbed by it either so I probably won't be giving this a chance unless on DVD.

As for the LAST HOUSE remake, it will be really hard to top David Hess as Krug. I'm not expecting a classic either, but I still plan to see this when it comes out just to see how it holds up. I guess I can find and view that trailer online since it wasn't on the screening that I saw.

Speaking of remakes, has anybody heard anything recently about that proposed remake of SUSPIRIA? This was mentioned several years ago (around the time they were announcing remakes of HALLOWEEN and THE FOG) but nothing has come of it yet. Call me crazy, but I think it would be interesting to see how they remake an Argento film. Hey they've remade classic (and not-so-classic) American films and J-horror flicks that are only a few years old, so why not European films?

[DylanDog]

I saw this last Wednesday before going out of town and while I can't say I loved it, I thought the 3D was amazing. I'd never seen a 3D film in a theater before and it far exceeded my expectations, especially at the beginning. I don't know if they toned it back in the middle or if my eyes just got used to it, but it seemed less impressive as the movie went along. I sort of want to go back and see it again, just for the first 15 minutes or so. As for the credits thing, c'mon Chuck, it was pretty obvious there was gonna be something! The camera slowly moving along the track deeper and deeper into the mine was obviously going towards something. Having said that, what you missed wasn't that big a deal. Just one last 3D shot. There was one obvious missed opportunity, I thought though. The chick who gets the shovel in the mouth. Her head started sliding off down the shovel handle towards the audience but then didn't. Now THAT would have been awesome if it did!

I didn't get to see the Last House trailer. This is actually the first I've heard of it. I'll have to look it up.

[metalgrrl]

I just saw this saturday and it was my first 3-d flick and oh my! what a fantasic time at the movies. I wish all action/horror movies were done in this type of manner, I would definately sit in the theatre if they were.

Yes, is was a typical slasher movie a times but still it was sooo much fun. My favorite part was the car crash and yes the bullet scene I don't think i could have pushed any farther into my seat trying to avoid either