DVD Review: My Bloody Valentine

My Bloody Valentine 3D hits theaters on January 16 but the original horror classic is releasing on Special Edition DVD on January 13. This is a release that fans have been wanting for years as the film has been restored to its original uncut glory.

Having not seen the original, I can't imagine how the movie would have worked as a horror film with the deleted footage missing. It seemed like all of the gore and kills were cut out. Leaving a rather tame thriller behind. With this DVD release, My Bloody Valentine is complete.



My Bloody Valentine is about a small town preparing to celebrate Valentine's Day for the first time in twenty years after a psycho miner goes on a murderous rampage. Now, as the holiday celebration approaches the killings begin again leaving the towns mayor and sheriff to believe the long committed killer has returned.

The film is pretty fun but it's still a horror film from 1981 and all of the pitfalls of that are here. The acting is a bit stiff and the jumps a little stale. The restored scenes however reveal that this is a movie that was cuttign edge with it's kills. There were some great effects forced to the cutting room floor by the MPAA. Some of these were good enough to make me cringe and gasp. I said before that I didn't see the original theatrical cut of this movie and am pretty thankful for that. It had to feel like a shredded movie.

The DVD looks great for the most part. You can tell when the added scenes begin because the picture quality changes drastically. The restored footage apparently wasn't able to be remastered as it looks pretty grainy and spotty. The special features are worth a watch including an interactive horror film history and the "Bloodlust: My Bloody Valentine and the Rise of the Slasher Film" featurette.

Any horror fan who hasn't seen this should pick it up and check it out. It's certainly a fun watch especially now that is has been returned to its full uncut widescreen glory.

Seeing the original has made me more curious for the remake. I can't say how successful it will be but my mind has gone from "eh" to "okay".

My Bloody Valentine hits stores on January 13.

My Bloody Valentine 3-D hits theaters on January 16.