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| Special Features: |
Widescreen format.
Chapter selection.
Director commentary.
Behind the scenes.
Theatrical trailer.
Club Reel: music video: Orgy "Opticon."
Cast and crew bios.
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| Video Format: |
Anamorphic Widescreen (2.35:1)
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| Languages: |
English (Dolby Digital 2.0)
French (Dolby Digital 2.0)
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| Captions: |
English, Spanish, French and Portugese.
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| Casing: |
1-Disc Keep Case
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I really hate to trash this movie after listening to the director's commentary track. Jamie Blanks seems
like a funny guy. However, Spielberg has proven that even good people can screw up (1941).
Basically "Valentine" is a stylish and well shot rehash of countless American slasher films from the 70s and 80s. Nerdy 12 year old gets dissed by three babes at the junior high prom. He ends up making out with a fat chick under the bleachers. When the couple is caught, even the fat chick turns on him and yells rape. Three bullies pull the nerdy guy out from under the bleachers and rip his pants off to his eternal humiliation.
Jump forward about 10 years. The three babes are still friends. The fat chick has become a proto-babe. She has shed the weight but still has that "fat girl" in a skinny body look about her. The girls receive some morbidly clever valentines before they begin to be dispatched one by one.
Studly buff successful guy shows up at the funeral of the first victim and sweeps one of the girls off her feet. The girls continue to die. Who did it? Hercule Peroit could figure this one out by looking at the DVD cover.
"Valentine" does have some nice performances by some very attractive people. What it doesn't have is much originality. There are a couple of cool murders, and the villain’s mask is imaginative. It also has Denise Richards in a bikini. 13 year olds will probably enjoy the film because they never saw many of this movie's predecessors. I rented it for a glimpse of Ms. Richard's body. I should have stuck to "Wild Things."
There are some tense moments and a couple of good shocks, but it's been done before. There is one priceless scene in which an actress rinses her hair in the toilet!
Warner Brothers included all the right stuff for a successful DVD. The picture and sound are quite good. There is a commentary track, imaginative menu and lots of extras. To me, "Valentine" is nothing more than a rental DVD, because the film is fairly lame.
Picture Quality: 10/10
The movie is well shot. There are scenes of darkness and shadows along with others shot in the light of day. Very good cinematography. The picture quality is at it's height during the murder at the multi-media art show. In fact that is the best thing about the movie.
Sound Quality: 10/10
Good soundtrack. As I have said before, sound is so important to the horror genre. Director Blanks uses sound to this ends quite well.
Menu: 10/10
Good design. Good use of music. Easy to navigate.
Extra Features: 10/10
I really enjoyed the commentary track by director Jamie Blanks. Unlike some filmmakers who talk about their work as if it was a fine piece of crystal from Tiffany's, director Blanks shows an uncommon honesty when talking about his film. He points out the shortcomings, and the limits put on him by the budget. He has a passion for his craft. I would like to see he helm a movie with a bigger budget and a better script. He is a proficient filmmaker who made the best of his material.
The featurette contains some deleted scenes. The Club Reel is kinda cool!
The Final Word:
I recommend renting the movie to hear the director's commentary. If you are a fan of the film, you will obviously rate it higher than me. For fans, Warner Brothers did produce a DVD that you may want to own. It's all a matter of taste.
Rusty White
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