My Bloody Valentine 3-D

I managed a movie theater from 2007 to 2013. It was an interesting time for the industry, as I was witness to the transformation from 35 MM film to digital. When I started in 2007, all of our screens ran traditional projectors with one to two projectionists per shift. By the time I left, all the screens were digital and projectionists were a thing of the past.

This push to digital occurred for several reasons.

1. It was cheaper to get films to the theater than having traditional films transported.
2. It cut down dramatically on labor costs.
3. The studios could exercise more control over their content and trailers.
4. There was money to be made by offering premium experiences (IMAX, 3-D, etc.)

The theater I worked at began with just one digital theater. They chose a medium size test theater, and our first 3-D movie was Coraline. Of course, the contractors who set up the projector didn’t set it up properly, so the 3-D looked terrible, and it took several weeks for someone to show up and actually fix it. But the gimmick of 3-D was already bringing in money, and we soon expanded to our biggest theaters, before eventually converting every theater and adding an IMAX.

Like the 1950s and the 1980s, the gimmick of 3-D brought movie-goers in promising a unique experience, and for a short while, like in the previous decades, people bought into it. The $3.50 surcharge brought in so much money it was hard to ignore, and the movie studios began oversaturating the market, and turning movies that weren’t filmed in 3-D into 3-D films and this diluted the experience. Eventually the appeal of 3-D was lost, and so theaters have tried other gimmicks such as 4-D to bring in paying customers to varying degrees of success.

Having worked through this 3-D boom, I saw quite a few movies in 3-D, but honestly, I couldn’t tell you which ones for the most part. The 3-D really had very little effect on the films, and it ultimately was the story and performances that are etched into my memory. The only films that I do recall seeing were ones that embraced the insanity of 3-D and had fun with it: Jackass 3-D, Piranha 3-D, and The Final Destination.

Last night, I sat down and watched 2009’s My Bloody Valentine, a film that was shot in 3-D and I’m sure is a much better experience in 3-D. I wish I had seen it in theaters.

Horror has a long history with 3-D. In the 1950s, House of Wax was the first 3-D color film of any genre. Creature from the Black Lagoon, which introduced the final Universal monster was also released in 3-D. In the 1980s, studios found themselves with several third sequels to play up the 3-D, Jaws 3-D, Amityville 3-D, and Friday the 13th Part 3. There were other films released, even into the 90s, like Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare, but these were the releases that most folks remember.

The 2000s-2010s had even more horror movies released, but none of them left much of an impression in 3-D. Titles like My Soul to Take, Saw VII 3D, Fright Night, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Texas Chainsaw 3D, and Ouija, were all released in 3D, but outside of Texas Chainsaw 3D, and maybe Saw VII, I’m sure most people wouldn’t know that. They were just random movies with some 3-D elements.

I guess, that’s what makes My Bloody Valentine so unique. Based on the much superior film from 1981, My Bloody Valentine 3D was directed by Patrick Lussier known for helming Dracula 2000, Dracula II: Ascension, Dracula III: Legacy, and The Prophecy 3: The Ascent. Mr. Lussier was tasked with bringing a cult classic that under performed in 1981 to modern day audiences, with a clear directive to lean into the 3-D elements.

My Bloody Valentine 3D was the first R-rated film projected in RealD (the modern 3-D method with clear glasses, not the old red and blue) and to receive a wide release. Filmed for just $14 million, the film went on to make $100 million but is seldom mentioned in circles of beloved horror films of the 2000s. I think this goes to show how much the gimmick of 3-D could have an effect on the box office total and enhance even a below average movies ability to generate cash.

I watched My Bloody Valentine 3-D on DVD around 2010. The DVD came with old school red and blue 3-D glasses, and I remember suffering through the uncomfortableness of the cardboard glasses just to enjoy the movie the best that I could. Outside of a single scene in a grocery store (I love horror scenes in grocery stores), I didn’t remember much about the film other than I was not in love with it. Last night, it popped up on my Tubi list, so I decided to give it another watch to see what I may have missed.

What I Liked About It:

-The film leans into the R rating with violent kills and decapitations. The film doesn’t shy away from the gore or the blood, and for extra fun, they made sure it came straight towards your face the same way the filmmakers did with Friday the 13th Part 3 three decades earlier. This was an experience I’m sure was memorable in theater and within the first five minutes it made me regret not seeing it in theater.

-Is the miner outfit the scariest outfit of all slashers? I think its possibly so.

-The casting is solid for this flick. The film is anchored by Dean Winchester himself, Jensen Ackles, alongside Final Destination alum Kerr Smith, and the underrated Jamie King. Horror veteran Tom Atkins makes his presence felt for what little time he has on screen.

-Horror movies are filled with small towns and small-town tropes, but My Bloody Valentine 3-D has the backdrop of a small mining town and it feels real and lived-in, unlike many of the small towns we’ve seen in other films.

-Kudos for one of the longest full-frontal nudity scenes I think I’ve ever seen in an R rated movie. We see so little nudity in films these days, I was almost shocked.

What I Didn’t Like About It:

-If I recall, one of the reasons I didn’t seek this film out in theater was the trailer pretty much gave away the plot. Of course, it only takes a few minutes before you realize where this film is going and sadly it never makes much of a case for whom the killer might be other than the logical choice.

-For the reasons I wish I saw it in theater (kills coming straight at you) it is also what hurts later releases. As much as I can talk highly of my experience watching 3-D movies that embrace the gimmick, when they are presented in 2-D they just look ridiculous and out of place. The first kill specifically was probably an amazing theater experience, but the 3-D animated gore is almost laughable. But like the pitchfork or snake in Friday the 13th Part III, hopefully these moments will go down as charming in the years to come.

-The pacing is a bit slow and since the payoff isn’t great, the movie falls short. There is nothing wrong with it, it’s just not great.

Final Thoughts

My Bloody Valentine 3-D is an entertaining watch that if I had to score it, I’d give two stars out of a five, but had I reviewed it after seeing it in theater, I have a feeling I would have walked out giving it four stars out of five. It’s a unique film to watch fifteen years later after the excitement of the last 3-D era has ended, but honestly not one I think I’ll ever watch again.

Random Tidbit: Several years ago, I ran a horror movie review site and when I started it I outlined the first ten movies I’d planned to rewatch and review. This was one of them. There is some major closure going on finally getting this review out of my system. Now I need to check off the last of those titles I never re-watched: Apt Pupil.

Random Tidbit 2: My mediocre response to watching My Bloody Valentine 3-D back in 2010, led to me avoiding the original for many years. Once I finally got around to watching it, I found that I really liked it and it’s one of my favorite 80s slashers. It’s definitely worth a watch if you love 80s slashers.