On Valentine’s Day, someone always loses their heart. Twenty years ago, this small town lost more than that. When supervisors abandoned their posts to attend the town’s annual holiday dance, a tragedy claimed the lives of five miners. The sole survivor, Harry Warden, was institutionalized, but returned for a vengeful massacre on the disaster’s first anniversary.
Nineteen years later, the town is gearing up for another Valentine’s Day party. Teen sweethearts T.J. and Sarah, along with their friend Axel, are among the excited partygoers. But when a box of candy containing an eerie warning and a blood-soaked heart arrives, the townsfolk realize that romance is as good as dead. And so are they …
For thoughts on My Bloody Valentine (1981), please check out our discussion on The Video Attic:
Video Quality
Scream Factory presents the unrated cut of My Bloody Valentine with a fabulous 2160p transfer in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio sourced from a new 4K restoration with Dolby Vision/HDR. This film was originally released on Blu-Ray by the label in 2020 which was derived from a 4K scan of the Original Camera Negative. While that release was championed at the time, the unique material in the unrated cut did not blend entirely seamlessly with the primary footage. With this new presentation, the transfer is an absolute knockout as the unrated material now folds into the rest of the footage to an almost imperceptible degree. This release serves as one of our absolute favorite horror upgrades and should be an essential addition to any collection.
One of the aspects that impresses the most is the implementation of Dolby Vision which brings out a world of depth and nuance even in the most shadowy spaces. The titular holiday brings about an array of decorations that radiate off the screen with brilliant shades of red and pink. More subdued hues also achieve their greatest level of accuracy such as the metallic sheen of the washing machines at the laundry mat or the dying vegetation on the roads leading away from the mines. The new presentation reaches a level of precision and color detail that likely improves upon the original run in theaters. Black levels are mighty with no blatant crush present, and the highlights remain resolute and never get too hot.
This disc preserves the sumptuous natural film grain which brings out a world of unique texture in the environments, the costumes, the grotesque special effects, and more. This grain resolves consistently with nothing ever appearing clumpy or swarming throughout either the daytime or nighttime scenes. This disc nails every environmental shift with ease. The special effects are given a spotlight with eye-popping clarity which makes the work all the more visceral, such as sharp objects piercing skin and crispy cadavers. This transfer has done a commendable job of cleaning up any potential print damage with very little in the way of specks or dirt remaining. This is topped off by a fabulous encode that does not succumb to any dips in quality. This is easily the best the film has looked on home entertainment, and slasher fans will be over the moon to witness such a standout release.
Audio Quality
The 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc comes with both a DTS-HD 2.0 Master Audio dual mono track and a DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio surround sound track which brings this story to life perfectly. The original mono track is the way to go for purists, but the surround track expands things in subtle ways that do not upset the original sonic intentions of the experience. The effective Paul Zaza score sounds great without a hint of damage or weakness. It aids in establishing an appropriate tone that achieves what it sets out to do. Environmental noises such as the raucous energy at the Valentine’s dance or the sounds of weapons hitting their mark come through with impeccable quality. Dialogue emanates with perfect clarity even during the more kinetic developments. The fidelity of the movie is in rare form no matter the sonic demands. The low end of the track provides some texture, but it does not get too invasive even in the 5.1 track. Scream Factory provided a lovely audio experience for this one. English SDH subtitles are provided for those who want them.
Special Features
Disc One (4K UHD – Unrated Cut – 1:33:00)
- Audio Commentary: Director George Mihalka provides a comprehensive and entertaining commentary track in which he discusses the shooting locations, hiring people from the town to work behind the scenes, the gory special effects, the performances in the film, technical aspects of the production, the cinematography and so much more that is an absolute delight to delve into for fans.
Disc Two (Blu-Ray – Unrated Cut – 1:33:00)
- Audio Commentary: Director George Mihalka
- My Bloody Valentine 35th Anniversary Cast Reunion: A great 47-minute post-screening Q&A at a horror festival with Mihalka, Rob Stein, Thomas Kovacs, Peter Cowper, Helene Udy, Alf Humphreys, Lori Hallier, and Jim Murchison. There are some great anecdotes about the creation of the film, the atmosphere on set, the film’s legacy, and more.
- Thomas Kovacs Performs “The Ballad of Harry Warden”: A five-minute performance at the same festival with footage from different events at the gathering.
Disc Three (Blu-Ray – Theatrical Cut – 1:30:27)
- My Anemic Valentine – Interview with Director George Mihalka: A 24-minute interview with the director in which he discusses getting involved with the movie, keeping the cast in the dark about the identity of the killer, the challenges of shooting on location, utilizing practical techniques, working with the performers and more.
- From The Heart – Interview with Actor Paul Kelman: A 14-minute interview with the performer in which he discusses being kept in the dark about the killer, memories of the shooting locations, the morality of the film, how Canada helped the horror genre during this time, the film’s cult following, and more.
- Axel, Be My Bloody Valentine – Interview with Actor Neil Affleck: A 15-minute interview with the performer who discusses his thoughts on not playing the miner, memories of George Mihalka, working with the special effects, the experience of shooting the movie, his thoughts on the remake, and more.
- Friends of Mine – Interview with Actress Lori Hallier: A 19-minute interview with the actress who answers many of the same questions posed to the other subjects along with updates on whether she would do a sequel and where she is at now in her career.
- Becoming Sylvia – Interview with Actress Helene Udy: A 17-minute interview with the actress who answers many of the same questions posed to the other subjects along with details about what it was like to film her death scene.
- Broken Hearts and Broken Bones – Interview with Special Effects Make-Up Designer Tom Burman: An 11-minute interview with the creative in which he discusses where he was at during this point in his career, what it is like working in Canada, memories of creating things for the film, working on a limited budget, and more.
- The Secret Keeper – Interview with Actor Rob Stein: A nearly 28-minute interview with the performer who answers many of the same questions posed to the other subjects along with his relationship with his fellow cast members.
- Holes In The Heart: A 13-minute comparison between the theatrical and unrated cut of the film.
- Theatrical Trailer: A two-minute trailer is provided here.
- TV Spots: A minute-and-a-half collection of TV Spots is provided here.
- Radio Spots: A minute-long collection of TV Spots is provided here.
- Still Gallery: This disc provides a series of stills and behind-the-scenes photos.
Final Thoughts
My Bloody Valentine is a classic slasher that really goes for the jugular in terms of violence. The characters are fairly well-defined in terms of gaining your interest before being served up as fodder for the killer. The pacing leaves very little room for your interest to wane, and the feature offers what you want from the experience. You have to admire what creatives were doing with practical special effects back in the day, as it just gave the movie extra personality. Scream Factory has provided this one with a 4K UHD Blu-Ray release that boasts a 5-star A/V presentation and a marvelous array of special features. This new presentation is the ultimate way to own this favorite. Highly Recommended
My Bloody Valentine (1981) (Collector’s Edition) is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD + Blu-Ray Combo Pack.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Scream Factory has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.