My Bloody Valentine (1981) Review

While the early 1980s saw the rise of a slew of slasher movies, few of them, in my opinion, deserve the critical acclaim despite their cult status. For me, ‘My Bloody Valentine’, released in 1981, and directed by George Mihalka, fits right into the first category.

It offers a compelling mystery involving a serial killer that does not rely on the “masked menace” trope and instead focuses on the unraveling of the murder mystery, which I find extremely refreshing.

Set in a small mining town of Valentine Bluffs, ‘My Bloody Valentine’ revolves around preparations for the first-ever Valentine Day celebration. Except, Harry Warden, one of the local miners, survived the mine accident and is out to kill everyone.

As the killings resume, the townspeople wonder if Harry Warden, their local bad-ass miner, is the killer.

And what a surprise it is for the residents of Valentine Bluffs and us, the viewers, to discover a love triangle between T.J. Hanniger, his ex-girlfriend Sarah, and her new boyfriend Axel Palmer.

I like the setup and the inclusion of the love triangle that Harry Warden terrorizes; it makes the small mining town and its residents more interesting and gives the killer a personal vendetta against some of the residents.

Although I found the plot relatively straightforward, it nevertheless provided enough intrigue and mystery to follow along. As the tension rises with every death, we are left guessing about who is responsible for the murders and what is happening in the mines.

Even more so, because Harry Warden is not your typical masked killer from the woods. He wears a mining suit, gas mask, and uses a pickaxe as his weapon of choice. This look is both menacing and hilarious, especially as he is seen breathing heavily into the mask, giving him a monstrous appearance as he stalks the mining tunnels. The setting is also worth mentioning, as ‘My Bloody Valentine’ provides a much darker and more isolated environment than the usual summer camp or suburban street settings of the slasher genre.

Speaking of slashers, the kills in ‘My Bloody Valentine’ are both creative and gruesome.

While Harry Warden impales a victim on a shower rod, and then we see the blood get spurted around the shower from their mouth. One of his other most horrific killing involves Mabel who is murdered then put into a tumble dryer and we see the end result, which is gnarly. These moments, among others, demonstrate that ‘My Bloody Valentine’ is not shy about showcasing gruesome deaths.

But despite the gruesome imagery, ‘My Bloody Valentine’ is not your typical slasher flick. Instead, it focuses more on the mystery surrounding the murders and the revelation of the killer’s identity. Although Axel is eventually revealed to be the murderer, his childhood trauma following Harry Warden’s killing of his father provides a tragic backstory to the overall ordeal.

Personally, I was quite disappointed to hear that ‘My Bloody Valentine’ was never able to secure a direct sequel. We had a compelling story and a fascinating set of characters that could explore not only the events of the movie but also lead to an entire franchise.

But alas, it was not to be. We only had the initial movie and the 2009 remake, which, while decent, fails to recapture the spirit of the original.

‘My Bloody Valentine’ is a movie that I would recommend to anyone interested in slasher movies. It has a dark mystery, a menacing killer, and some of the most creative kills I have witnessed in quite some time.

It may not feature a hockey mask, a wisecracking villain, or a supernatural twist, but sometimes a mining suit, gas mask, and pickaxe are enough to scare the living daylights out of someone.