MovieChat Forums > Happy Death Day (2017) Discussion > Much more amusing than expected!

Much more amusing than expected!

posted 7 years ago by GunWillTravel (198)
10 replies | jump to latest

OK, so you've seen Groundhog Day, and Edge of Tomorrow, and Frequency, and a dozen other time travel/time loop movies, and you think you've got the idea.

Well, you're probably right. The basic structure is easy to understand: Start each day, proceed until death, wake up and re-live the day with the knowledge of what happened before. But there are a few twists and wrinkles that keep this movie from becoming tedious, like these types of movies occasionally do.

I actually liked the fact that the film didn't try to explain too much about how or why the loop is working - those things weigh down time travel stories with exposition and ultimately result in absurd plot problems anyway. This movie focuses on peeling away at the lead, rather than dry scientific explanations. There are some hints about the rules of the loop, but ultimately this movie is concerned with its lead character, not its technical time travel foundation.

Jessica Rothe has a really strong screen presence that keeps your attention fixed as she progresses from smugness and indifference, to shock and confusion, to fear and pain, to anger and frustration, and finally to determination and confidence. With a little happiness, sadness, and flirtation mixed in. It's a really demanding performance that keeps her on screen for virtually every shot in this roller coaster of a movie, but she's up to it.

So it's not as deep as Primer, not as mind-bending as Donnie Darko, not as gritty as Looper. But as much as I admire those films, I would say this movie is easily as much fun to watch. If those films are fine steak dishes, this one is a really well-made hamburger: A lot faster to devour and digest, and pretty damn satisfying in its own right.

[–] therefdotcom (964) 7 years ago

agreed, except for the last part. primer tried too hard for what it actually delivers and it beats looper eeeeeasily. as for darko, that's the only one that i would say is on a different level, even though it is not a time travel movie in the samme manner. now, if you would have brought "time crimes" or even better "triangle" into the discussion, then we'd be cooking, but those aren't time travel movies in the same matter either. concept wise i think we are rather talking "repaters" here, which was also fantastic.

[–] GunWillTravel (198) 7 years ago

I don't want to say that this film is better or worse than those films. It's just a different take.

For example, Primer was a low-budget film that required a lot of focus and thinking to follow. It's impressive in how much it accomplished with limited means. I think that it pencilled out a lot more contingencies than most time travel stories. But it certainly doesn't appeal to as wide an audience as Happy Death Day.

I happen to like time travel stories, but my perception is that a lot of people are getting tired of them and might skip this one as a result. My point is that this film deserves a viewing, not because it's a better film than those - just a different one.

[–] therefdotcom (964) 7 years ago

agreed by all means. btw, did you watch repeaters, triangle and time crimes?

[–] GunWillTravel (198) 7 years ago

Saw Triangle and Timecrimes, not Repeaters.

I liked Triangle. Now that you mention it, some elements of the death/time loop from Triangle are not unlike Happy Death Day.

I didn't like Timecrimes nearly as much as other people. I didn't buy the pink face mask gimmick, or sympathize with the lead, whose actions seem contrived. I do respect the amount of thought that went into the time travel aspect of the plot, and that it was done on a shoestring budget, but it's not a film I enjoyed watching.

[–] sslssg (34211) 7 years ago

Have you seen Salvage (2006)? It's low budget, but if you like time loop horror movies this one might appeal to you.

[–] GunWillTravel (198) 7 years ago

Have not seen it yet, but it looks promising!

[–] sslssg (34211) 7 years ago

There are a few pacing issues, but I really liked the movie as a whole.

[–] KutWrite (1302) 7 years ago

Yeah, I thought it was worth seeing.

There are holes in the plot (e.g. why the poisoning?), but the moral lesson, acting, humor, and even the reference to "Groundhog Day" ("Didn't see it" "Never heard of Bill Murray") made me smile.

Plus, a few hot girls never hurt a movie!

Main thing I did not like was minor: The acquiescence to PC concepts (gay guy learning to accept himself and "Now go save the planet, girl!"). Maybe those are de rigeur for anything about contemporary colleges, though.

The relationship with her dad was confusing at first, as she reveals it late in the film. The brief exposition from the home videos showing Mom pushing her face into the cake made me think the mother could be the killer!

Overall, I"m glad I saw it.

[–] Faridah (1363) 7 years ago

I was impressed. My teens wanted to rent it from Redbox and I agreed. The trailer looked good but I wasn’t expecting much. My husband and I enjoyed it as much as our teens. We laughed a lot too. I was clueless about the killer. It’s a great movie.

[–] Babar (42) 6 years ago

I really enjoyed it too, which I was not expecting.