One of the more story driven slashers, J. Lee Thompson’s “Happy Birthday to Me” is certainly much different than I expected. Instead of taking time to craft every bloodsoaked kill scene, Thompson and writers John C.W. Saxton, Peter Jobin, and Timothy Bond were more concerned with an extensive back-story and as many swerves as they could come up with.
The acting in this one is done really well and I think the cast was chosen very intelligently. Each actor brings something unique to this group of rich, entitled friends and the mix managed to blend together perfectly. There are so many moments in this movie where I thought I finally had everything figured out. Let me assure you, though, that was certainly not the case. I’m pretty sure it is 100% impossible to have this one figured out until it is all spelled out for you at the very end.
Because the development of the main character, ‘Ginny,’ was such an in-depth one, “Happy Birthday to Me” drags on at moments, making viewers feel every second of the 110 minute runtime as they crawl by.
While this 1981 slasher isn’t my favorite, I would still recommend it to anyone who is looking for variety. The story alone, although confusing at times, is still worth at least one sit through. Overall, “Happy Birthday to Me” gets 2 birthday candles out of 5.
