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**_Unique, lush slasher with a notable cast fumbles at the end_** A teen returns to a hoity-toity private academy in the Northeast after a seriously traumatic experience (Melissa Sue Anderson) where members of the so-called Top Ten circl...
Movie spotlight
Happy Birthday to Me
1981
Movie
110 min
English
Virginia is proud that she belongs to a clique. The best students at a private school. But before her 18th birthday, a gruesome set of murders take place and her friends are the ones who are falling prey. Could it be her? She suffers from blackouts due to a freak accident one year earlier. We soon learn the truth behind her accident and what is going on.
Insights
IMDb5.9/10
Rotten Tomatoes60%
Google Users65%
Director: J. Lee Thompson•Genres: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Plot Summary
A popular high school student, Virginia, returns to her elite boarding school after a severe accident that left her with amnesia and facial scars. As her birthday approaches, her friends begin to disappear one by one, and she starts to suspect that someone from her past is targeting her. Virginia must piece together fragmented memories to uncover the truth behind the killings before she becomes the next victim.
Critical Reception
Happy Birthday to Me is considered a cult classic within the slasher genre, often praised for its suspenseful atmosphere and surprising twists, despite some critics noting its predictable plot elements and occasional pacing issues. It was a modest commercial success upon its release.
What Reviewers Say
Praised for its suspenseful build-up and effective slasher set pieces.
Noted for its surprising, albeit convoluted, twist ending.
Criticized for some stereotypical characters and a formulaic narrative.
Google audience: Audiences generally appreciate the film's nostalgic 80s slasher feel and the suspenseful mystery surrounding the disappearances. Some find the plot somewhat convoluted, but the overall atmosphere and the shocking conclusion are often cited as highlights.
Fun Fact
The film's climactic reveal involves a character who is not who they appear to be, a trope that became more common in subsequent slasher films.
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My Review
TMDB Reviews
2 reviews
tmdb17996075
"Happy Birthday to Me" is a fairly entertaining slasher from the early 1980s, in which the main target is composed by a bunch of hateful know-it-all teenagers who basically deserve the worst possible deaths. There's nothing really spectacul...