Grade: C
Going in I expected Christopher Landon’s “Happy Death Day”
to be very silly. It is, after all, a
mixture of teen slasher horror and the Harold Ramis comedy “Groundhog Day.” On
that front it certainly met my expectations. However, it wasn’t until about ten
minutes into “Happy Death Day” that I realized the “Groundhog Day” gimmick (the
hero has to relive the same day over and over) is better suited to the horror genre
than I originally thought, in a non-silly way.
Before I expand on this point lets get the plot out of the
way. College student Tree Gelbman
(Jessica Rothe) wakes up on her birthday with a miserable hangover, in the dorm
of an awkward college freshman Carter (Israel Broussard). After a cold
interaction, she walks back across the university campus to her sorority, where
she runs into the snotty Danielle (Rachel Matthews) and her quiet roommate Lori
(Ruby Modine). Later that night, as she walks to an on campus party she is
violently murdered by a masked maniac wearing a creepy baby facemask (the
school’s mascot). She wakes up in Carter’s bed again and…well, you know.
The idea of having to relive the day of your violent murder
again and again is legitimately terrifying. It’s like having the same nightmare
over and over again with no “wake up” period. When you wake up, you're back in
it. And no matter what you try and do,
your stuck in this horrifying loop, unable to avoid your grim fate. Hell, just
typing out that sentence made me a little anxious. There is potential here for
a good, serious horror movie, which we catch brief glimpses of early on in “Happy
Death Day,” as when Tree (on her third ‘death day’) decides to skip the party
and barricade herself in her room.
Yet, as I alluded to in the opening paragraph, “Happy Death
Day” goes the silly route. Landon’s film is a remake of “Groundhog Day;” there
are similar plot points and Tree’s character arc mirrors Bill Murray’s. At the
same time, it’s a goofier, more self-aware version of “I Know What You Did Last
Summer” and other horror films of that ilk.
As a young adult, college set “Groundhog Day,” “Death Day”
is surprisingly solid, if a little predictable. Rothe gives a snarky, lovable
performance and Scott Lobdell’s screenplay actually takes the character
seriously--treating Tree’s transformation from cold and self-absorbed to warm
and considerate with earnestness and humor. Broussard is good as the nice guy/romantic
interest and Matthews is delectable as the snotty ‘mean girl.” The only glaring
issue is the treatment of Tree’s troubled relationship with her mom and dad.
Were this solely a “Groundhog Day” remake and not also a horror movie, the
filmmakers might have been able to better develop the relationship but as it
stands now the material is contrived.
As a horror-comedy, “Death Day” isn’t so successful. There’s
fun to be had but by and large the humor is more miss than hit. And the film
itself eventually goes off the rails, not in a fun way but in a grating,
obnoxious one. I winced when Tree started delivering cheesy quips and strained
one-liners. Meanwhile, the horror elements are mostly half-baked and uninspiring.
While Tree’s initial interactions with the mysterious killer are tense, subsequent
meetings are annoyingly disorienting and poorly shot. The inclusion of an
escaped murderer late in the second act is a trite Red Haring and the final
twist (wherein we discover the true identity of the murderer) is convoluted and
underwhelming.
In the end, there are two potentially good movie concepts in
“Happy Death Day:” a serious horror film that uses the “Groundhog Day” gimmick
as a jumping off point as well as a young adult, female led “Groundhog Day”
(with touches of “Mean Girls” and “Clueless” style social satire) remake. Unfortunately,
the product being released this weekend is a mildly fun but thoroughly mediocre
combination of said concepts.
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