Ian’s review published on Letterboxd:
65/100
“Roses are red, violets are blue, one is dead, and so are you.”
Not sure what exactly has been my issue of checking out films in their original release and only *after* seeing the finished film nearly every single person agrees that the only version you should be watching is the unrated or directors cut. Happened to me a couple of times in the past month or two alone and once again here with My Bloody Valentine. Have a sneaking suspicion that I might check it out the unrated version on Valentine’s Day next year, but for right now the film hit that slasher need just right.
I think the film doesn’t use all its wits in the right way because it felt like the Valentine’s Day theme was added as a bit of an afterthought and the main focus should’ve been on how the film is based around the mine; it gets there eventually, but the two don’t merge that simultaneously and I was a bit thrown off at the whole Valentine’s Day revenge killing. Despite this weird thought, the film still has one of the best set pieces and final act of a slasher film that I can think of. It’s claustrophobic and haunting and you never know if the main group makes the right turn and it makes for a thrilling time to watch it unfold.
The main cast is pretty charming and charismatic; at first I thought the whole love triangle was a bit of a weird inclusion, but the further the film got, the more it kinda worked. T.J. is a bit of a wooden “protagonist” but the support from Axel & Hollis make up for it. Sarah also fits in the final girl(?) role pretty well. Almost didn’t enjoy the film but the whole last sequence really bumps it up (can imagine how much better it is in the unrated cut). Still, the killer revealed was a reel shocker and the kills were equally as fun, George Mihalka’s My Bloody Valentine is a worthy slasher in my eyes.
