I went into Happy Death Day with some low expectations, even though the reviews have been mostly positive for the film. Happy Death Day mixes one of my least favorite genres of film with a formulaic storyline that I have always struggled to enjoy. As a horror film director, Christopher Landon (Disturbia) uses a whole lot of jump scares to try and get the audience out of their seats. Yet, almost all of the jumpscares are easily predictable and often not scary at all.
Another issue I have with this film is that I've always struggled to enjoy the use of a constantly repeating storyline, which is one of the main premises of Happy Death Day. Once you've seen the plot recur three or four times, it starts to drag the film down more and more. A runtime of one hour and thirty-six minutes feel more like a two hour film because of the repetitive filmmaking. Furthermore, this convention has been done a lot in film, from Groundhog Day to Edge of Tomorrow. I'm not sure if it has been used for horror before this film, but it still seems like it's been overused.
Happy Death Day also tries to entertain audiences with a comedic script, but the jokes fall flat with immaturity. Nothing is too clever, but rather plays on sexual innuendos and valley girl-esque speeches. As the lead actress, Jessica Rothe (La La Land) is good enough to handle the eye-rolls and head nods necessary for the role. There is no real emotion in any of the characters with a completely surface-level development for some of them. They act their own parts, but there really isn't anything worthy of a rewatch.
The Bottom Line: Happy Death Day plays well for younger audiences that don't require much depth for a late night feature.
Score: 4/10
Another issue I have with this film is that I've always struggled to enjoy the use of a constantly repeating storyline, which is one of the main premises of Happy Death Day. Once you've seen the plot recur three or four times, it starts to drag the film down more and more. A runtime of one hour and thirty-six minutes feel more like a two hour film because of the repetitive filmmaking. Furthermore, this convention has been done a lot in film, from Groundhog Day to Edge of Tomorrow. I'm not sure if it has been used for horror before this film, but it still seems like it's been overused.
Happy Death Day also tries to entertain audiences with a comedic script, but the jokes fall flat with immaturity. Nothing is too clever, but rather plays on sexual innuendos and valley girl-esque speeches. As the lead actress, Jessica Rothe (La La Land) is good enough to handle the eye-rolls and head nods necessary for the role. There is no real emotion in any of the characters with a completely surface-level development for some of them. They act their own parts, but there really isn't anything worthy of a rewatch.
The Bottom Line: Happy Death Day plays well for younger audiences that don't require much depth for a late night feature.
Score: 4/10
