I didn't have high expectations for Happy Death Day. But hey, I have Moviepass and have already seen all the movies that were on my "must see" list. The film looked like Groundhog Day meets Friday the 13th, which is interesting, since it premiered on Friday, the 13th. Because my expectations were low, I am happy to report that this film exceeded my expectations. In fact, I would recommend it as a matinee film. Heck, it's the bewitching season, and this is a fun spin on the slasher.
Tree Gelman (Jessica Rothe) has a problem. It's her birthday, which brings back painful memories. Plus she's a bitch. We meet her as she wakes up in the male dorm, where she is abrasive and curt to the occupant, Carter Davis (Israel Broussard). Carter took her home to his dorm room the night before out of concern, not out of an opportunity to take advantage of her. Tree doesn't really seem to care. She has lots of enemies. As the day progresses, a series of events happen that ultimately lead to her demise. Like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, she relives her birthday (and death day) time and again as she attempts to thwart her killer. And live to see another day. The list of suspects is long. Amazingly, Tree begins to recognize her flaws and softens as she learns to cherish the day that has been given to her. If only she can stop dying and move forward with her epiphany.
I'm not a fan of director Christopher Landon's work. I have only seen a couple of his films, but I have not been impressed. Among the films I have seen, this is my clear favorite. That may be due to the writing. Scott Lobdell has written a few films I have seen, and I have really enjoyed those films. The characters are a bit superficial in Happy Death Day, but the plot has a couple of nice twists. The pacing is also exceptional. The film doesn't lag with unnecessary suspense building. We get right down to the action. Time and again. The film also had a couple of decent comedic lines. For the genre, this film was definitely better than others I have seen. Not by much, but better.
I can't believe I am about to write this. But I am. I thought Rothe's performance was flawless. For what it was. She did an excellent job of selling me on a somewhat contrived character. The "evolution" of her character is hackneyed Hollywood garbage. But she made the transition believable. It would have been easy to dislike her character. Dumb blondes in horror movies don't generally deliver noteworthy performances. She carried the film. I wasn't really buying her chemistry with Broussard, but that was more his fault. I just didn't care that much for him. The casting was pretty good for a slasher take off.
Happy Death Day was decent fun. I enjoyed it more than IMDb (6.5) although not by much. Again, I had very low expectations, simply killing an afternoon with a free movie. The film exceeded my expectations enough that I would recommend it at the matinee price. Or for a Halloween date night, maybe. The acting was a mixed bag and the characters somewhat flat. But the pacing was good, the action was gripping and the concept was interesting. I was never bored and I chuckled a few times. In other words, money well spent. 7/10.
