I am a sucker for slasher (slasher movies have a serial
killer who is on the rampage killing people in brutal manner for no apparently logical
reason whatsoever. Think Halloween and Friday the 13th) movies. The thrill
of the hunt, of eluding the pursuer, of trapping the intended victims, if done
right gives me immense pleasure. However, their quality more often than not,
leaves much to be desired and hence there is a mixture of trepidation as well as
excitement whenever I begin viewing one.
I want to see how
inventive the director can be in the killer’s methods of hunting people down. I
also want to find out whether the script writer has done his homework or
whether he has only indulged in plagiarism and written a screenplay which can
be easily reproduced on a needle head. However, I also understand this is a
genre which has been done to death and it is really unfair to expect something
earth shattering. That is why a
well-made slasher is something to be cherished.
“My Bloody Valentine” begins on the 12th of
February with a better than average kill. A man, dressed in a miner’s suit, stabs
a luscious blonde through her heart with his pickaxe.
The action then shifts to a nearby small town and a legend is told
by a geriatric asshole about a miner called Harry Warden who was left for dead
some twenty years ago in the mines on the V day. He supposedly came back from
the death and threatened the townsfolk that there should be no Valentine Day
celebration or else a bloodbath would ensue. Why this warning was heeded to for
twenty years and why they have decided to go for a celebration that year are
explained in a flimsy manner. The real fun starts when the killing spree picks
up speed. There is a love track and elements of jealously also thrown in the
story to further add spice to the drama.
The viewer is kept sufficiently interested with appropriate time lag between the deaths. Most of the characters seem real and are acted well
which is a surprise for such a film. The ending is kind of lame but it does not
take much away from the fun quotient.
I had the misfortune of watching its 2009 remake, shot in
3-fucking-d which sucked badly. It was a miracle the remake earned more than
100 million worldwide.
According to Wikipedia, Tarantino rated this as his favorite
slasher movie of all time.
If you want to choose between the two versions, select the
older one without any hesitation. This is a better than average slasher flick
and is a must watch for the fans of the genre.
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