The Legend of Bloody Mary on DVD(2008)
© Lions Gate
Mania Grade: D
DVD: The Legend of Bloody Mary
Rating: R
Starring: Paul Priess, Robert J. Locke, Irina Costa, Stephen Macht
Written By: John Stecenko & Dominick R. Domingo
Directed By: John Stecenko
Distributor: Lions Gate
Original Year of Release: 2008
Extras: Audio Commentary, Alternate ending & Opening, Featurettes, trailers, Testimonials
Buy it now!
DVD: The Legend of Bloody Mary
Rating: R
Starring: Paul Priess, Robert J. Locke, Irina Costa, Stephen Macht
Written By: John Stecenko & Dominick R. Domingo
Directed By: John Stecenko
Distributor: Lions Gate
Original Year of Release: 2008
Extras: Audio Commentary, Alternate ending & Opening, Featurettes, trailers, Testimonials
Buy it now!
DVD Review of The Legend of Bloody Mary
By: Tim JansonReview Date: Sunday, October 05, 2008
The Legend of Bloody Mary centers on the often-told urban myth about the spirit who will haunt/kill the person who repeats her name three times in front of a mirror. It employs folklore surrounding Mary Worth or Mary Worthington, depending upon which version you hear. In this case, it casts Mary as an accused witch during Puritan times. Refusing to name the man responsible for getting her pregnant, Mary is accused of heresy and sentenced to death. Tied to a tree, a large mirror is placed before her so she can watch herself die as the towns people take turns cutting her with a knife. Mary curses the people with her dying breath. If you’re guessing that the film isn’t big on historical accuracy you win a prize.
In the present, Ryan (Paul Preiss) is suffering from bad dreams ever since the night his sister Amy, and several of her friends disappeared seven years earlier. The girls were planning a big party and looking for a game to scare their guests. Searching the Internet they came across the Bloody Mary game. Ryan’s girlfriend suggests he talk with a priest friend about his dreams. Father O’ Neal is about the lamest looking priest ever seen on film. Wearing a cowboy hat and jeans, he looks more like a country singer than a clergyman. Conveniently, a construction crew turns up the very mirror used in Mary’s execution on the grounds of his church.
The plot is a confused mess. Over half the film takes place in flashback sequences to either Mary’s trial in the 1600s or Amy’s disappearance seven years ago. This allows no flow at all to the story. There also is no explanation as to why Bloody Mary is after Ryan now, these many years later. The performances are uniformly poor. The lines are delivered without a hint of emotion or expression. The only notable cast member is veteran character actor Stephen Macht playing the 1600s judge who sentences Mary Worth to death.
To top things off, you barely even get a peep at Bloody Mary. She can only be seen in mirrors so when she is attacking her victims, you see them battling an invisible foe, dragged across the floor by an unseen source. You catch only fleeting glimpses of Mary as they pass a mirror. You don’t even see her face until the final few seconds of the film when they do the old, “You thought the monster was dead but really isn’t” trick. It might be just as well though…it seems as though the make-up and visual effects people basically copied the ghost’s look from “The Ring” to use for Mary: long dark hair, tattered dress, decomposed skin. The film also borrows plot elements from “Darkness Falls”, another bad horror film but far better than this one.
The disc does come with a number of extras…if you should really be interested. These include a director’s commentary, alternate opening and endings, three featurettes and testimonials. The testimonials are actually kind of fun. These are interviews with high school kids about the Bloody Mary legend and their experiences in playing the game.
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