Often mentioned as a horror Groundhog Day, the story more obviously takes off from Edge of Tomorrow. It’s Live/Die/Repeat done as a slasher film, one where the killer wears an exceptional mask. This was the same year Jason Blum produced Get Out, which by comparison makes this film an underdog. Get Out has more to discuss and a great script, but Happy Death Day is so much fun, and it works better as a Horror movie while also being a great Murder Mystery, where the victim must unmask her killer to break the cycle of being repeatedly murdered. Some of the performances are weak, but there are a couple in Get Out that stick out as being just as bad. Meanwhile Jessica Rothe goes through one of the decade’s best character arcs, where with each death she becomes more human.
This film made me a fan of Christopher Landon (Drop, Freaky), and I’m aware that I rate all his films a couple of notches above the average, except for the sequel, which is terrible, but it gave me a new appreciation for what the first film does right instead of destroying its power. There’s a glee to his stories, and here it finds an on-screen partner in Jessica Rothe, who I thought would be a bigger star by now. I wasn’t expecting this young, pretty blonde to do more than be young and pretty, like most victims in teen slasher movies, but Rothe hones in on that nervous humor people have during uncomfortable situations. As she wakes up from being killed over and over she becomes increasingly aware of the shallow social politics of college life that lead to her friends being a pack of (literal) potential backstabbers. Starting with the thrilling garage scene, Happy Death Day becomes more of an amusement park whip ride, spinning itself in more intense loops, and the reveal of the killer is a terrific surprise.
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