By Nadia Ranaputri
Director: Christopher B. Landon
Cast: Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Ruby Modine, Rachel Matthews, Rob Mello, Charles Aitken.
Groundhog Day, Edge of Tomorrow, and Happy Death Day. What do they all have in common? For one, they all have a plot where someone who has to relive the same day over and over again each time he/she dies. Edge of Tomorrow was Groundhog Day but if it was sci-fi, while Happy Death Day is Groundhog Day....if it was a slasher.
Happy Death Day begins with your average college student Tree Gelbman, who wakes up in someone else's dorm room after a night of drinking. Turns out, that particular day was her birthday. Nevertheless, it's any normal day for Tree, going into classes, passing sprinklers, a sorority bully, the rest goes on. Eventually, her day ends when her life does, as she meets a mysterious masked figure who stabs her with a knife and has her wake up in the same dorm room that she was in earlier during the day; which starts her spiraling journey of her repeated murder, then reliving the same day over and over again.
Happy Death Day is surprisingly fun, and while it's a little watered down at times, there's some thought put into it. Slashers aren't always the best films, and they're not always the scariest either, but you have to admit that at some point, they are actually fun. Happy Death Day, while following the same premise of Groundhog Day, puts a twist to a beloved person-relives-the-same-day-over-and-over-again story by wrapping it in a killer bow. It's funny, and quite thrilling in a way. Remember those scary ghost rides that aren't all that frightening but still fun nonetheless? Convert that into a film, and you get Happy Death Day.
It also helps that Jessica Rothe, who plays Tree, is a genuine delight as the film's lead. Rothe is hilarious during the film's funny moments, but it's in Tree's dire moments that become Rothe's shining moment. She starts off as dismissive and rude to her friends and other companions, but once she begins reliving the same day over and over, it not only changes her decisions throughout the day, but changes her as a person as well. Throughout the nightmarish time loop that she has to go through, she becomes a little more focused, agile, attentive, but ultimately weaker, having been affected by each of the continuous time loops.
And you'd be happy to hear that Happy Death Day isn't that big of a convoluted mess. It's actually well-structured for a Groundhog Day-style slasher film. Like any slasher, it has its mysteries, but would it hurt to eventually get seeped in to it and invest in it? It definitely doesn't, and Happy Death Day has enough intriguing elements to get its plot going without leaving its pages blank and uncolored. It is however, minimal in gore, and lack some tension at some parts, as well as its initial theme that is horror. Happy Death Day isn't that scary, though it's quite close to following the same scare tactic as Scream does, it is eventually a less frightening slasher, not that it matters all that much.
In a pace that J.K Simmons' Terence Fletcher wouldn't bother to butcher most of the time, the plot doesn't drag nor rush. It's enough to keep us informed whilst also enough to keep its hidden twists and turns at bay. Is it mindless? Yes, at times. Is it a bland slasher? Not in the slightest. Happy Death Day probably isn't the best choice if you're looking for something with more substance and thought, leave that to the much more thought-provoking Blade Runner 2049 ; but if you're looking for a little fun (especially if you're a slasher fan) and have nothing to see in cinemas, Happy Death Day might just make it in your consideration.
It's not a perfect film. It isn't something that leaves you tinkering about it long after it finishes, and it's probably not one you'd be willing to see again. For all its suprisingly funny and hearty moments, Happy Death Day still puts some of its weight on some horror tropes (and some chick-flick tropes, too, as well as the obligatory "I can tell everything that happens exactly when it happens" scene that reminisces of Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow when he starts to ramble out everything Bill Paxton was about to say), and like I said, it could be mindless, but I would be lying if I said I didn't have a slight blast with it. Happy Death Day is a killer slasher that's entertaining when seen in the best mood and the best company. Having someone relive the same day over and over could be a dull premise when seen on paper, but seeing that films like Groundhog Day, Edge of Tomorrow, and now Happy Death Day; work on premises like that, is it really as dull as it seems?
Stars: 3.2/5
Trailer
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| Image source: thereelworld.net |
Director: Christopher B. Landon
Cast: Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Ruby Modine, Rachel Matthews, Rob Mello, Charles Aitken.
Groundhog Day, Edge of Tomorrow, and Happy Death Day. What do they all have in common? For one, they all have a plot where someone who has to relive the same day over and over again each time he/she dies. Edge of Tomorrow was Groundhog Day but if it was sci-fi, while Happy Death Day is Groundhog Day....if it was a slasher.
Happy Death Day begins with your average college student Tree Gelbman, who wakes up in someone else's dorm room after a night of drinking. Turns out, that particular day was her birthday. Nevertheless, it's any normal day for Tree, going into classes, passing sprinklers, a sorority bully, the rest goes on. Eventually, her day ends when her life does, as she meets a mysterious masked figure who stabs her with a knife and has her wake up in the same dorm room that she was in earlier during the day; which starts her spiraling journey of her repeated murder, then reliving the same day over and over again.
Happy Death Day is surprisingly fun, and while it's a little watered down at times, there's some thought put into it. Slashers aren't always the best films, and they're not always the scariest either, but you have to admit that at some point, they are actually fun. Happy Death Day, while following the same premise of Groundhog Day, puts a twist to a beloved person-relives-the-same-day-over-and-over-again story by wrapping it in a killer bow. It's funny, and quite thrilling in a way. Remember those scary ghost rides that aren't all that frightening but still fun nonetheless? Convert that into a film, and you get Happy Death Day.
 |
| Image source: IMDB |
It also helps that Jessica Rothe, who plays Tree, is a genuine delight as the film's lead. Rothe is hilarious during the film's funny moments, but it's in Tree's dire moments that become Rothe's shining moment. She starts off as dismissive and rude to her friends and other companions, but once she begins reliving the same day over and over, it not only changes her decisions throughout the day, but changes her as a person as well. Throughout the nightmarish time loop that she has to go through, she becomes a little more focused, agile, attentive, but ultimately weaker, having been affected by each of the continuous time loops.
And you'd be happy to hear that Happy Death Day isn't that big of a convoluted mess. It's actually well-structured for a Groundhog Day-style slasher film. Like any slasher, it has its mysteries, but would it hurt to eventually get seeped in to it and invest in it? It definitely doesn't, and Happy Death Day has enough intriguing elements to get its plot going without leaving its pages blank and uncolored. It is however, minimal in gore, and lack some tension at some parts, as well as its initial theme that is horror. Happy Death Day isn't that scary, though it's quite close to following the same scare tactic as Scream does, it is eventually a less frightening slasher, not that it matters all that much.
 |
| Image source: IMDB |
In a pace that J.K Simmons' Terence Fletcher wouldn't bother to butcher most of the time, the plot doesn't drag nor rush. It's enough to keep us informed whilst also enough to keep its hidden twists and turns at bay. Is it mindless? Yes, at times. Is it a bland slasher? Not in the slightest. Happy Death Day probably isn't the best choice if you're looking for something with more substance and thought, leave that to the much more thought-provoking Blade Runner 2049 ; but if you're looking for a little fun (especially if you're a slasher fan) and have nothing to see in cinemas, Happy Death Day might just make it in your consideration.
It's not a perfect film. It isn't something that leaves you tinkering about it long after it finishes, and it's probably not one you'd be willing to see again. For all its suprisingly funny and hearty moments, Happy Death Day still puts some of its weight on some horror tropes (and some chick-flick tropes, too, as well as the obligatory "I can tell everything that happens exactly when it happens" scene that reminisces of Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow when he starts to ramble out everything Bill Paxton was about to say), and like I said, it could be mindless, but I would be lying if I said I didn't have a slight blast with it. Happy Death Day is a killer slasher that's entertaining when seen in the best mood and the best company. Having someone relive the same day over and over could be a dull premise when seen on paper, but seeing that films like Groundhog Day, Edge of Tomorrow, and now Happy Death Day; work on premises like that, is it really as dull as it seems?
Stars: 3.2/5
Trailer
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