After filming on location in Pennsylvania, the film was given a 3D theatrical release in the United States by Lionsgate. My Bloody Valentine 3D was released in the United States on January 16, 2009, by Lionsgate. 14 million and received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, who praised its performances and production values, but some critics found it to be “formulaic” and “generic”, criticizing things to get my girlfriend for valentine’s day screenplay, the wooden characters and the 3-D technology.
On Valentine’s Day 1997, six miners are trapped underground by an explosion at the Hanniger mine in the small mining community of Harmony. By the time rescuers reach the miners, they find only comatose Harry Warden still alive. Further investigation reveals that Warden killed the other miners to conserve oxygen. One year later, Warden has awakened from his coma and is now murdering as an act of revenge. He starts by killing numerous patients and staff at the hospital where he was a patient, leaving a victim’s heart in a box of chocolates. Ten years later, Tom returns to Harmony after his father dies.
He is selling the mine, which angers mine manager Ben Foley. Axel, now the town’s sheriff, has married Sarah but is having an affair with her coworker Megan. At the motel where Tom is staying, a masked assailant murders Irene and two other people. Camera footage from the scene reveals the killer dressed as a miner, starting rumors that Warden has returned. Axel receives a chocolate box containing Irene’s heart. Looking for Foley in the mine, Tom is locked inside a utility cage by the Miner, who murders the worker accompanying Tom and vanishes before help arrives.
Tom insists that Warden has returned, but Axel reveals that Foley and Sheriff Burke found and killed Warden after his attack ten years ago. The group visits the woods where Warden’s body was buried, but find that the grave is empty. Tom resolves to track down and stop Warden. The Miner attacks Sarah and Megan, killing Megan just before Axel arrives. Sarah is hospitalized with minor wounds. The Miner then kills former sheriff Burke as well as the maid of Axel and Sarah’s home. Tom shows up at the hospital, telling Sarah he has to show her something he found in Axel’s cabin.
She checks herself out and accompanies Tom. As they drive, Tom suggests that Axel is the killer. There she discovers evidence of Axel’s affair and a tower of empty valentine gift boxes. The Miner appears and chases her into the mine. She is hiding in the mine when Axel arrives, and Sarah grabs his gun.
Tom shows up, and Sarah holds the two men at gunpoint as they each accuse the other of being the killer. Tom, however, mentions the way Megan was killed, inadvertently revealing he is the killer. The film was shot in Southwestern Pennsylvania, taking advantage of the state’s tax incentives for film productions as well as the topographical and architectural versatility of the Pittsburgh Metro area. The film was shot entirely digitally in 4K resolution. Special make-up effects were created by Gary J.
109 critics gave the film a positive review, with the consensus reading: “This gory, senses-assaulting slasher film is an unpretentious, effective mix of old-school horror stylings and modern 3D technology”. 3-D gimmick for all it’s worth: Everything from tree branches and gun barrels to bloody pickaxes and bloodier body parts appears to jump off the screen. He also makes effective use of the depth-of-field illusion, allowing audiences long views of various chest cavities from which hearts have been rudely ripped. Mark Olsen of the Los Angeles Times said, the implemented 3-D technology enables “startling effects, but after a while the minor thrill of the trick is gone. Advances in digital technology have allowed the filmmakers to largely avoid the physical headaches that are perhaps the biggest hallmark of the cyclical attempts at 3-D moviemaking”. From the moment you duck a flying mandible and gaze, mesmerized, at a severed hand oozing two inches from your nose, you’ll be convinced that the extra dimension was worth seeking out. But what really leaps out at you about My Bloody Valentine 3-D is its lack of imagination”.