I will freely admit to stealing the “shoegazing” moniker from My Bloody Valentine’s Wikipedia page and I link to it freely to provide context that would otherwise be unrequired for certain other webcomics.
I’m no great fan of the band, but I am familiar with their work. In particular, the instrumental tracks off the Lost in Translation soundtrack which were penned by My Bloody Valentine’s lead singer Kevin Shields. I like that album a lot.
As for the movie, My Bloody Valentine 3D, it looks like pure, Grade-A shlock. I’ve been making fun of the trailer for this film since it came out last fall.
At first, I thought the trailer was a put-on. Something The Wayans Brothers cooked up for an extension of the Scary Movie franchise. But it’s 100% for real. A bunch of anonymous pretty-somethings getting hacked to death by some guy in a gas mask. Brilliant.
My favorite line in the trailer isn’t from the movie itself, but a great bit of marketing all the same: “Nothing says ‘date movie’ like a 3D ride to Hell!”
Sounds like something my wife would really like!
I guess that’s something I don’t understand about the positioning of this movie. Once again, a horror film jumps the gun by being released months in advance of the terror-filled “holiday” it shares a name with. Rob Zombie’s remake of Halloween was released on August 31 of 2007 – two full months before the actual holiday. At least the remake of Black Christmas managed to get it right by being released on Christmas Day in 2006.
But if the producers of My Bloody Valentine 3D are trying to promote the film as a date movie, why not wait a month for Valentine’s Day to roll around in February?
Obviously this movie is trash. I mean, look at the teaser poster. It looks like an advertisement for a ride at Universal Studios!
But what do you guys think? Does it look like a fun time at the movies to you with the potential for a great audience experience? Does the 3D gimmick hold any value for you? In other words, do you think My Bloody Valentine 3D is a movie you would see if it weren’t in 3D?
I’m curious as to everyone’s take on this film. Leave your comments below and let’s discuss!
So you realize that My Bloody Valentine 3D is a remake of a 1981 horror movie and not a film about the Dublin shoegazing band with the same name?
Goth Jared? Look at me...
All I'm saying is, if you're going to commit to the goth lifestyle, you gotta do your research, buddy!
I think they originally wanted a Valentine’s release, but pulled back when the new Friday the 13th movie was scheduled for then. They didn’t want to go up against the Jason Vorhees juggernaut I guess.
Alexander’s right; It was originally scheduled for a Feb. 13th slot, but that was changed some months back.
That said, I’m still stoked about this movie. It’s got Jensen Ackles from ‘Supernatural,’ a solid R rating and decent reviews on Bloody Disgusting and Dread Central.
Hmm… I didn’t know about the push-off due to the Friday the 13th remake. Color me educated.
Is it just me, or are all horror movies remakes lately? The last one I can remember that wasn’t was The Ruins. But then, that was kind of a riff on The Descent.
Thoughts?
I’m generally excited by horror movies but this one looks so awful. My friend wants to see it and his wife is looking forward to it so maybe the advertising holds truth with certain folks.
My Bloody Valentine isn’t a goth band. Shoegazing and goth are two separate things. And the original MBV was where the band got the name.
For my own education, can you explain the difference between shoegazing and goth? Aren’t they both kind of downbeat and slightly depressing? Are you thinking of goth in terms of romantic imagery? I guess I see some overlap.
Makes sense the band took their name from the original movie.
I dunno, but based on that poster, the girl in the knit halter top shouldn’t be expecting much out of her boyfriend tonight… or any other night in the future.
Sadly, I think we’re going to see more and more films going 3D simply because it’s the one area where they can still draw audiences to theaters (I’ve watched Nightmare Before Christmas 3D every year despite owning several copies of it at home).
As far as this film is concerned, I think it could be worth a good laugh as long as you go in expecting nothing more than a stupid popcorn slasher flick. One of those movies where you go just to be in the company of someone rather than to see the movie itself.
My brother and I were actually talking about this last night! We both agree that most “horror” movies now are pretty much all a joke rather than actually made to scare you or even to be inventive. Most are funnier than they are scary or thrilling. More movies need to be made like “Seven” and the first “Saw” movie- very scary, gory, unlike most other movies before, and only funny when they are supposed to be.
Also, Hollywood needs to stop remaking movies when the originals are not that old and are perfectly good on their own; so for me, this movie is a complete waste. The absolute only reason I might see it is because it’s 3D, but in this economy, I doubt that alone will induce me to spend my hard earned money on this crap.
I’m not exactly sure how you’d define goth music – I’d probably start by saying it’s more of a lifestyle that includes listening to certain bands. I don’t think there’s a “goth” genre itself. If there was, I’d generally have it encompass the downbeat 80s new wave stuff like the Cure and Joy Division (not to get into more contemporary stuff where goth is crossed with emo sounds, like A.F.I. or the Used).
Shoegaze (mostly defined by MBV) I think is more late 80s, early 90s, defined more by sonic experimentation than extreme levels of emotion. Where you have Ian Curtis (Joy Division) getting desperately suicidal, Robert Smith (Cure) contorting his voice to express his undying love, or Morissey (Smiths) agonizing over his own sexuality, Kevin Shields of MBV was a lot more interested in getting very specific sounds that had never been done before. The lyrics on most songs are completely obscured, and the distortion creates a super dense yet beautiful sound.
A fair number of goths probably listen to MBV, so it’s not surprising Goth Jared would be a fan, but I think the main types who listen to MBV are interested in sonic experimentation. In webcomic terms, it’s kind of like, I dunno, the A Lesson is Learned but the Damage Is Irreversible (alessonislearned.com) of 90s music.
If you are interested, listen to the album Loveless. It’s so immaculately crafted it bankrupted the label they were on, but it’s like nothing you’ve ever heard before. Give it some time, I can’t guarantee you’ll like it but I can guarantee you’ve never heard a guitar sound exactly like that before.
Wow, that explanation was way too long. Liked the comic too, btw!
That’s a great explaination, actually! I’ll certainly give “Loveless” a try!
The return of goth Jared! Always a pleasure.
Also, the dieting ad is back again, just an FYI….
I kind of want to go see this, although the 3D aspect is really what’s drawing me to this. I haven’t been to any recent 3D films and I’d like to see what it’s like. I’ll see how the reviews go first, if it sounds like a complete waste of time, then I’ll pass.
Jensen Ackles from ‘Supernatural is probably the only reason i would even consider going to see this movie.
Mmmmm hot emo boy fighting pick axe wielding manics…..sounds fun and like a typical popcorn thriller.
That is a great explanation of shoegazing historyman68! The name shoegazing actually comes from the fact that the bands would usually look down at their shoes, which was actually where the different guitar pedals were located. I was lucky enough to see MBV on their most recent tour, and the crowd was actually really diverse. Hipsters, some goths, young and old people alike. Also Loveless is amazing!
I would not be seeing this movie at all if it weren’t for Jensen Ackles. But he’s in it, so I’m going.
I am only excited for Jensen Ackles from ‘Supernatural’. That is a fantastic show.
No one has actually made a scary movie for like the last 30 years. All they do now is suspense and gore.
This movie is honestly only good to see for the sheer fun of the audience experience. Nothing funnier than listening to 30 girls and their boyfriends when they scream at an “oh my god you know that guy is coming back to life” moment.
I actually caught a pre-screening of MBV3D last night. It’s the type of Slasher movie that doesn’t take itself seriously. It’s not trying to force feed you some hackneyed story line, the acting is sub par and it has gratuitous sex scenes in it.
The 3D aspect of it certainly adds an appeal to it and makes some of the more suspenseful parts far more effective.
All in all it’s actually a pretty decent movie if you lower your standards (which seem to be pretty low these days with the recent stream of movies coming out)
You mention the sex scenes and I always thought that was an interesting component of horror movies. I can never decide if it’s meant to lull the audience into a sense of false comfort or represent victims at their most vulnerable. Maybe both. But it seems uniquely American that sex followed by murder in horror movies. Kind of like an exaggerated expression of our puritanical birthright that you will be punished for having sex out of marriage. I could be wrong, but European horror movies seem to stem more from psychological or mythical archtypes and seem less gratuitous for it.
Don’t bother watching most Asian horror films. Their idea of scary is pale, creepy kids standing in water and following you around.
Isn’t that a quote from somewhere? Asian horror films use the principle “if it enduces fear it is scary”, american horrors use the principle “if we keep throwing things at you and you jump we have scared you”. It is a difference in ethos.
Watched My Bloody Valentine 3D “remake” last night. It is actually quite different than the original (which is a movie I happen to like a lot). It’s more of a suspense/whodunnit type of movie than what I would consider a “slasher” movie. I don’t want to go into too many details or mention any spoilers, though. It wasn’t as terrible as I thought it would be, and I watch a lot of “horror” movies. There were fun moments and interesting shots to take advantage of the 3D, but most of the time it isn’t too distracting. I don’t think the movie is all that “serious” anyway, but that could just be what I got from it. There were a few scenes that some people would probably consider explicit.
The trailers included 2 other upcoming horror remakes, ha!
One topic that came up after watching was, “Why do all these horror remakes have WB stars in them?”.