Runtime:
93 minutes (the unrated version)
Directed
by: George Mihalka
Starring:
Paul Kelman, Lori Hallier, Neil “No Relation To Ben” Affleck,
Keith Knight
From:
Paramount
I
figured it was time to go through the big pile of DVD's I have and
watch something from there tonight. I went with this film, as I've
seen the remake a few times and even talked about it last year. Now,
here's my chance to talk about the original, a slice of
Canuxploitation from Canada that has a fervent fan base and in a rare
move for me, I have to praise Lionsgate for pulling the strings and
convincing Paramount to have them release an unrated version rather
than the R-rated version that was rated during one of the times that
the MPAA cracked down on the horror genre. Sure, it's obvious when
watching the unrrated version what the cut material was as the print
for those scenes are of obviously poorer quality, but it's better
than nothing and it's nice that a more true version could finally be
seen by that fervent fanbase.
The
plot isn't too dissimilar to the remake: In 1960, there's a
Valentine's Day dance (an annual tradition) in the fictious town of
Valentine Bluff, Nova Scotia. On that day, there was an accident in
the mine that killed four people (due to the error of two men who
left too early to go to the dance) and once Harry Warden was dug out
of there... well, he was in bad mental shape, as you see him eat the
dead people to survive. The next year he got revenge by killing the
two guys who made that error; he also cut out their heart and left
the message that there should never be another Valentine's Day dance,
or else he'll keep on killing. The dance was cancelled and Harry was
committed. Suddenly, in 1980 you see a bunch of young miners and
their ladies (some of them real asstagonists; there's also a love
triangle involving a dude returning to town; here, he's the son of
the mayor) as the dance is brought back... only for the killings to
start again and Harry to be found missing from the insane asylum. Is
he the one doing the killings?
Like
I said, there are some asstagonists you get to spend time with. The
last film this director did before MBV was Pinball Summer, a movie I
saw and reviewed last year after a podcast did a scathing review for
it, mainly because they hated the A-hole protagonists and called them
asstagonists, a term I have gleefully used ever since. And yes,
several people from Pinball Summer have small roles in this movie.
Sure, those guys in this film are annoying but eventually I was able
to put up with their goofball immature ways and I was able to laugh
at how dopey and silly they acted, and their love for Schlitz and
Moosehead beer; you see plenty of advertising for the latter.
Overall,
this is a pretty fun slasher. It's always an interesting story and
there's a real mystery as to who is doing the killing. There are some
fun characters, such as Hap, the bartender who is like Crazy Ralph
from Friday the 13th; you know, “You're all doomed”,
warning the kids of trouble, and all that. I also have to note that
Axel looks like Not Aaron Eckhart and I have to give props to Hollis,
who looks like Not John Candy with a giant mustache and a “Kiss My
(Donkey)” hat. And yes, I enjoy the kills. You get to see in the
unrated version... they are pretty nasty and gruesome. So, you'll
likely enjoy the kills too if you are a slasher fan. The intentional
and unintentional laughs help balance out all the horror stuff,
making this quite a bit of fun for me.
I'll
be back Sunday afternoon, where I'll talk about what I hope is the
glory and majesty of Fast & Furious 6.
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