This ‘80s movie My Bloody Valentine directed by George Mihalka is the bread and butter of horror movie clichés. From the movie being set in a small town, where everyone knows everyone, to a complicated love triangle, to the combination of sex and gore being wrapped up in a beautiful pink heart shaped box just in time for Halloween.
The coal mining town of Valentine Bluffs did not have a Valentine’s Day celebration in over 20 years. Ever since a coal mining accident that killed 4 miners and left one trapped for several days. Due to two negligent supervisors who had left their posts early, in order to attend a Valentine’s Day party.
Harry Warden, the sole survivor from the mining accident went after the two supervisors for revenge, killing them with a mining axe and removing their hearts and stuffing them into heart shaped boxes. He warned the town to never hold another Valentine’s Day party or more killings would follow. After some years had passed and the memory of Harry Warden’s warning were forgotten, the people of Valentine Bluffs have decided to hold the first Valentine’s Day party in over 20 years.
The movie starts off with two miners dressed up in full gear, covering their faces with breathing masks; heading down into the depths of one of the dark shafts of a mine. Arriving at what appears to be an intersection of two shafts crossing one another, where the two come to a stop. One begins to undress, revealing that one of the miners is a woman, almost naked, except for her underwear beneath the navy blue jumpsuit.
The end of the first scene is tied off with the typical horror movie cliché of boobs, sex, blood and gore. A plot point that has become overly predictable with horror movies produced within the ‘80s, which has remained prominent in today’s movie productions. It’s almost like painting a bright red target on specific characters; a symbol that foreshadows their impending doom.
The Mayor (Larry Reynolds) of Valentine Bluffs has something extra to celebrate about, with the return of his son T.J. (Paul Kelman), after he up and left, over a year ago. When T.J. left, he didn’t tell anyone where he was going and if he was ever going to be coming back. In the Fray he left behind his then girlfriend Sarah (Lori Hallier) who has since moved on and is in a relationship with Axel (Neil Affleck) another miner who works alongside T.J. Sarah, however, still has feelings for T.J., causing tension between the two men.
Now if the love triangle is starting to bore you, have no fear, this slasher film is in no short supply of bodies dropping throughout the film. The way in which every character is killed off gives praise to their creativity. Not one is killed off the same way, which keeps the audience members riveted to their seats and gasping every so often, in sympathetic horror and pain for the dying actors on screen. Furthermore, the gore scenes in My Bloody Valentine are elevated to a whole new level by the stellar job done by the special effects makeup artists who had to individually design body parts and various other gory pieces that make those scenes stand out.
Filmed on location in Sydney Mines, Nova Scotia, My Bloody Valentine provides a satisfying thriller with plot twists and an unsuspected ending. It is not your typical jump out horror movie, My Bloody Valentine is a classic suspense story that has you sitting on the edge of your seat, as your favourite characters navigate the dark with a killer that seems to be ahead of them at every turn.