Rating: 9/10
Genre: Thriller
Related films: Mean Girls, Groundhog Day, Scream
When Tree Gelbman wakes up on her birthday in a stranger’s dorm room she goes about her usual self-centred behaviour. When she is unexpectedly attacked and murdered; she suddenly wakes up in the same dorm room, unharmed. She must figure out who murdered her by reliving the day, over and over.
After a heavy campaign for this film, with ads everywhere you turn I was super excited for this release. I was not disappointed but it was not what I expected. The trailer makes this seem like a scary (at least jump-scare filled) but in reality any seasoned thriller viewer could have seen the occasional jump-scare coming from a mile off. Another thing that surprised me was how tame it was, I was expected some gore given the masked character that features in the trailer, but in reality the deaths are quickly brushed off camera and the few bits of violence seen on screen are very brief. One thing that could have drastically made this film scarier was to up the rating and change the target audience from teens to adults. This would have given those working on the film the chance to make it scarier and a bit gorier. I also don’t feel the choice to boost the age-rating would have damaged interest because the 90’s slasher film nostalgia would have drummed up plenty of interest.
Although it borrows hugely from Groundhog Day, it is definitely different enough. The film is a typical teen movie but it is very aware of that and I felt it often played on the expected tropes. I really enjoyed the plot of this film as each day she relived was different and the character development was great. Every day was altered in someway or another because of the choices Tree made. As the days went on Tree learnt a few home truths and even became more confident trying things she had never thought of doing before. There were some parts of the plot that felt unnecessary and were probably added to pad the fairly short 96minute runtime this film hails; although unnecessary they didn’t feel too clunky or awkward. Jessica Rothe brought something special to the character of Tree and it was a joy to watch the way she brought life to this mean girl character. The rest of the supporting cast work well alongside Rothe with special mention to sorority president Danielle (Rachel Matthews) who provided the snappy one-liners and the perfect put downs.
The film features all the typical horror/slasher movie must haves: creepy masks, dark tunnels, eerie music, hospital corridors and the occasional jump scare. Mix this altogether with a plot twist or two, quick witted comedy, character redemption and an excellent montage scene to the beat of Demi Lovato’s Confident (a personal favourite scene) and you have Happy Death Day
Rating : 7.5/10
By Rebecca Mannick
This may be the first movie Leanne and I have a slightly different rating. I feel like this is because of the genre of this film. It is definitely not a straight-out horror film, nor is it scary or gory. It has a couple of 'jumpy' moments ill give it that, but don't let the 'horror' put you off going to see 'Happy Death Day'.
So now you know not to expect a traditional horror film, so don't expect it to blow you away either. I'm not saying this is a bad movie by any means. I'm saying that its pretty trashy, in an alright way though. So obviously the movie is like groundhog day so it takes you through the same scenario/day a couple of times. There are a few moments which are quite funny. I spent more of my time laughing than actually being scared.
The plot twist towards the end wasn't predictable but it also wasn't shocking. It was comical all the way through and the ending is no exception.
I would recommend this movie, especially for teenagers and young adults. A good fun film to see with your mates. Unfortunately yet again no gay scale for this one!
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