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Parents' Guide to

My Bloody Valentine (1981)

By James Rocchi, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 18+

Old-school slasher film is too gory for kids.

Movie R 1981 91 minutes
My Bloody Valentine (1981) Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

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age 14+

Based on 3 parent reviews

Blackchristmas
Blackchristmas Adult
November 22, 2019
age 14+

Old school slasher isn’t for kids

this iconic slasher film -- recently remade as My Bloody Valentine 3-D -- is full of gory deaths, especially in this DVD's "Unrated" version; the stalking miner-suit wearing killer is also quite frightening. The film also has the requisite '80s slasher-film link between sex and death, where teens at play are targets for a killer's wrath while doing the figurative deed.
Shane T.
Shane T. Adult
November 26, 2017
age 14+
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In the small mining town of Valentine's Bluffs, there's a 20-year-old secret of mystery and murder. While the mine's managers were at a Valentine's Day dance, a cave-in trapped and killed a number of workers; the one survivor who escaped, Harry Warden, avenged himself on the managers and supervisors through bloody murder, sending their torn-out hearts inside candy packages as a dire warning. Harry was sent to the asylum, but 20 years later, as the town prepares for Valentine's Day festivities, a new killer stalks the town; is Harry back, or has a new killer taken up his murderous crusade?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3 ):
Kids say (11 ):

This is worth viewing as a historical curiosity -- and the film's mining-town setting is used to make for a unique, chilling variation on the classic slasher flick as well.

At the same time, a unique slasher flick is still, at heart, a slasher flick; My Bloody Valentine's screaming victims and bloody murders are fairly pedestrian stuff, albeit well-made, with a little more emphasis on personal relationships and character than you might expect. My Bloody Valentine will have some historical interest for fans of slasher films, especially with this DVD's extras and presentation of the unrated cut, but it's still, at the end of the day, an '80s horror quickie.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the appeal of the slasher film -- what makes these movies so well-loved, and such often-remade movies by modern Hollywood? Families can also talk about the Freudian link between sex and death in these films; why do these movies seem compelled to show teens being murdered during sex? Is it a cautionary warning, or grim exploitation?

Movie Details

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