"Happy Birthday To Me (1981)" Review and Kill ranking
Happy Birthday to me is a very solid 1981 Murder Mystery / Horror flick about a group of students who get picked off 1 by 1 and a girl who has severe brain trauma but it's not at all what you think. I wholeheartedly think this movie doesn't get the love that it deserves. There's a handful of very creative kills, Great dialogue and a few swerves to keep you on your toes. Unlike a lot of eighties horror movies this film tries not to overdo the blood and overdo the comical feel of 80's practical effects which may be a deal breaker for some folks but I found it to be very well rounded and with some great acting. As much of a headache at times the "whos the killer" vibe was at the beginning i found it all very satisfying because they were all kind of assholes at the start of the movie and shitty things happening to shitty people is always fun, haha. I would honestly love for this film to have a remake. Especially with all the tech and make up we have currently but i have fears that it wouldnt be as good. It may look good visually but i feel they may try to modernize it too much and it would suffer a great deal.
If I had to give it a rating I think I would give it a solid B
- Stab in cemetery:
The scene was pretty good but the kill itself was easily the worst one of the movie. Ginny gets followed to her mother's graves by who you thought was a killer but gets uno reverse carded and ends up with a knife in the gut. 90% of horror movies end up with somebody getting stabbed in the stomach and then after that it was done. So the scene was just very regular, uneventful and not super significant
- Kebab skewer:
The only reason why this isn't ranked the worst kill was because of how unique it was. How many other times have you seen a kebob through the throat? The scene was pretty decent but the kill itself was quick and uneventful.
- Bathtub scene:
Coming after a great flashback of Ginny's mom and how she died before all these killings happened. This was a great scene if you count the flashback but the kill itself was not really shown just a body in the tub. Nonetheless it was a pivotal point in the story.
- Opening scene:
You don't exactly know who this is until a little bit later in the movie. It keeps you on the look out for the person with the gloves so you start looking for hints. This kill sets the tone for the movie, Is showing that you will never see the face of the actual killer while they kill so you'll keep on guessing. Great acting, Was kind of multiple attempts and 1 death. All moments were good but still kind of normal so nothing special
- Firepoker scene:
There was definitely something kind of off about her psychiatrist so I was totally OK with this happening. The guy tried to hide all of the deaths that he knew about and at times being creepy. Great acting, Kind of a swerve, Blood splatter was all of the place.
- Motorcycle wheel scene:
This kill was extremely inique for its time. I haven't seen this kind of death in a movie very often maybe 2 other times if I recall. A super satisfying scene especially after the breaking into Ginny's bedroom scene. That's what you get for being creepy)
- Weight room scene:
This was my my favorite kill but it still wasn't the best kill. Not really any story for this scene at the moment but the vulnerability, trust and creativity in this scene makes it that much better. Great acting, Never saw another one of these kind of kills.
- Birthday Dinner scene:
This is what you would have thought was the final kill, the dad looking for his daughter and finds her and her friends copses ready for birthday cake, it's awesome. Using the cake knife guiding all on it was a great call too. Lots of drama, great acting, very dark scene. I loved it.
- Final Kill:
Huge swerve, sums up whole movie, As far as kills go kills go this was fairly normal but in the context of the story and what led up to it with all of the acting and dialog this makes it the best scene of the movie.
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