College student Tree's birthday is about as trashy and awkward as any you could expect, and it ends with her own murder. But she wakes up as if from a dream and soon learns it is again her birthday. Seemingly trapped in a time loop, she is forced to relive her birthday (and death day) time and again, and after attempting to avoid her killer and failing, she determines to identify and confront her killer. It's a fun premise, one that promises (and delivers on!) lots of violent and creative murders, all with a knowing sense of humor.
Director Christopher B. Landon (writer of Disturbia and the Paranormal Activity series) has crafted a Scream-like flick that will at once make you laugh out loud and cringe, as the not-quite likeable heroine sasses her way into the slasher's killing grounds. The almost unbearably creepy baby-face mask of the killer is offset by the beauty-model standard of the rest of the cast, and they're all having so much fun it's hard to look away.
The filmmakers do their duty in keeping things interesting, combining what would be a rote slasher movie with meta references (a sorority house, a hospital, a parking garage; creepy roommates, jealous lovers, absent parents) and underscoring the whole thing with a heart of gold. It's all a sort of morbid It's a Wonderful Life as Tree learns that, under repeated pain of death, it costs precious little to be nice to the people around you. As she lives the same day repeatedly, the little things that change are sometimes better and sometimes worse, but all seem interconnected. Perhaps because the filmmakers (and Tree, as she eventually learns) know that anyone has more than enough motive to do the deed. She's been awful to everyone, and chalk it up to her privilege or good old-fashioned cruelty, in the first few scenes I was even rooting for the various players to kill her.
Jessica Rothe's starmaking turn as Tree is more than enough reason to watch this flick, as she carries the complex psychological trauma with enthusiasm and vigor. The rest of the pitch-perfect cast falls in sync, especially a downright lovable Israel Broussard as her one-night-stand who happens to be a wonderful person and I love him. Oops, got a little carried away there.
What else is there to say? I won't spoil the end for you, just be aware that all may not be as you suspect. There are a few nice little red herrings and a big crazy turn that will make you either gasp or want to scream "I KNEW IT", as I was tempted. It's a delightful genre romp that creeped me out, made me laugh, and encouraged me to think. A sweet center, so to speak, laced with whodunnit suspense, baked in metafiction, and iced with sweet slasher spectacle. I might have preferred a hard "R" rating and a few more interesting turns, but this film knew not to drag itself out. "What a sneaky little byotch!"
IMDb: Happy Death Day
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