Review: Happy Death Day/Happy Death Day 2U

Dir. Christopher Landon (2017/2019)

The following review contains minor spoilers.

Take Groundhog Day, add a mascot-wearing killer, and replace Bill Murray with a sorority student who’s kind of a terrible person, and you get the setup for the first Happy Death Day movie. A hilarious, knowingly campy romp that’s equal parts light slasher and effective comedy. If that weren’t enough, there’s a bold streak of hard-hitting yet genuine sentimentality to this story that both surprised and delighted me upon first viewing! 

The PG13 rating keeps events from getting too graphic and the comedy injects an effortless breeziness to the proceedings. That’s not to say the first movie is toothless, the slasher elements manage to pack just enough punch in a mostly successful effort to find that middle ground between the horror fiend in the audience and their squeamish friend watching between fingers. 

Through the course of the film, the characters really grow on you and the story is able to keep you guessing, the solution lands just shy of overcomplicated. Performances are generally pretty good but our lead character Tree (played by Jessica Rothe) delivers an incredible range of emotions. I fully expect to see more of this actor in the coming years, hopefully in a wide range of roles. By the time credits roll, I’m sure you’ll agree with me at least on this point!

The movie’s tone is a tensely calibrated balance between a standard slasher and a breezy romantic comedy, neither side overshadows the other and the balance is well maintained throughout the film. Despite the movie’s gentler than the average slasher nature, it’s still a bit too rough and raunchy to be much fun for the whole family and may feel a bit too toned down for the blood and guts crowd. For everyone else, this is a stellar gateway film for the next generation of horror fans and a laugh out loud crowd pleaser, perfect for date nights or group movie nights. 

There’s a theme of optimistic futility running through Happy Death Day, positing the notion that struggling against things we cannot change may be futile in result but can have the side effect of making us better people as the result of our efforts. We may not be able to change the world or make everything the way it should be, but attempting to do so will transform us into better versions of ourselves. It’s a bittersweet and deep message coming from a movie featuring a man-sized-baby with a kitchen knife! Don’t worry though, the sequel wads this theme up and throws it in a woodchipper.

But I’m getting ahead of myself, Happy Death Day 2U (cute title), trades in the overall decent acting of the first for overall pretty mediocre performances (except Jessica Rothe who still completely runs away with the movie), it trades the simple narrative one of the first for something a bit more complex, and it trades the horror part of the horror comedy for...well...more comedy.

That’s right, Happy Death Day 2U is BARELY a slasher and feels more like a goofy, screwball 80’s comedy. It doesn’t all land, but man is it a slice of good-natured fun when it does! The sequel isn’t as good as the original so it helps to go in with lowered expectations, but when you’re able to meet the movie on it’s own terms...it’s a lot of fun! The story progresses in some really inspired (and some really stupid) directions, our protagonist is forced to learn and grow beyond her arc from the first, and it all wraps up with a tidy little message about not wishing for an idealized version of your life...or was it about romance being more important than family? It’s muddled in its delivery but hey, muddled is a good descriptor for nearly every aspect of this second film. But honestly, if you loved the first and have realistic expectations about the second, you’ll probably have a pretty good time.

-Josh Evans