What would you do if you were trapped in the same day over and over again? This question becomes reality for the main character in the new film Happy Death Day. It stars an egotistical sorority girl who has everything she could ever want, but continuously gets murdered, and has to relive the day until she can figure out who her killer is. Sound familiar? For very obvious reasons, the 2017 film Happy Death Day is a modern day recreation of the 1993 Groundhog Day. If you haven’t seen it yet, Groundhog Day includes a young weatherman who is trying to cover the annual Groundhog Day events. Like Happy Death Day, the main character relives the same day over and over until he gets it right.
Many people would argue that Groundhog Day is better, being a classic and all. However, I beg to differ. I am going to include my favorite quote from the TV show “How I Met Your Mother”: New is always better. Now, I don’t always believe this quote to be true, but in a lot of cases, it is. When It comes to Happy Death Day, I believe that the modern day vibe, and bits of comedy strewn throughout make it a far superior movie to Groundhog Day. Happy Death Day has almost reached the same box office makings ($69 million) as Groundhog Day ($70 million). So what makes it so great? The world’s favorite cinematic tool: the plot twist. I am not one to give spoilers, so I won’t. But let me tell you, this movie knows how to keep you on the edge of your seat. I think I verbally gasped when the plot twist reveals itself.
Although most people would argue that Bill Murray’s acting in Groundhog Day surpasses any acting that could have been done in Happy Death Day, the acting is not what makes or breaks this movie (although it is very well done). The thing that makes this movie so great, aside from the plot twist, is the way that the genre to this movie was so hard to distinguish. Some people might think that would make for a bad film, but with this, it just works. Is it a romance? Is it a comedy? Is it a thriller? The answer is all of the above. This movie keeps you on your toes, and I definitely think that it will make Groundhog Day a memory of the past.