I’ve decided to subject myself to 31 days of horror films for the month of October. It will be a mix of rewatching stuff I haven’t seen in a while and brand new things. Day 17:

HAPPY DEATH DAY (2017) dir.  Christopher B. Landon

HAPPY DEATH DAY was a movie that I was excited for since the moment I saw the trailer months ago. The premise of a college girl having to solve her own murder via GROUNDHOG DAY time loop is something so silly that I knew I could get behind. Plus the killer is wearing king cake baby mask so it added another layer of weirdness to film.

Tree (Jessica Rothe) does a good job of nailing the insanity of having to relive the same day over and over again only to have it end in your horrifying murder. All the side characters are one dimensional but since they all play outrageous caricature like catty sorority leader or needy roommate,  it’s amusing to see Tree crossover each suspect by getting murdered while doing reconnaissance.

My real big complaint though is they made this movie PG-13 so it could make more money. A lot of the deaths are off screen or cut right before the blow happens. I think the premise could have lead to a lot more creative and wacky deaths a la FINAL DESTINATION. I’m not a gore-hound but I don’t know. The rest of the movie is so fun and the deaths are kinda the payoff for each cycle, I just wish they had gone the extra distance for the movie.

That said, the movie is fun enough that I never got bored watching. There was a 3rd act reveal that had me worried but they corrected and managed to steer back on course. If you’ve got a weak stomach for horror and just want to be entertained. This may be the movie for you. If you’re a hardcore horror fan, the movie will entertain you but nothing but some funny dialogue or situations will stick out.