Double Feature: Happy Death Day (2017) & Happy Death Day 2U (2019)

A sudden change in plans brings another double feature before we start the Blood in the Snow Festival coverage. A lot going on right now. Either way, 31 days of Horror is in the final few days and this pairing is Happy Death Day and its sequel Happy Death Day 2U. Let’s check it out!

Happy Death Day (2017)

Director: Christopher Landon

Cast: Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Ruby Modine, Charles Aitken, Laura Clifton, Rachel Matthews, Jason Bayle, Rob Mello

A college student must relive the day of her murder over and over again, in a loop that will end only when she discovers her killer’s identity. – IMDB

Riding between science fiction, slasher and dark comedy, Happy Death Day is quite the entertaining romp that its meant to be. Playing with the concept of an unknown time loop that takes our main character Theresa, mostly known as Tree who is a sorority girl with her own issues and a whole lot of enemies that keeps dying and waking up on her birthday as she tries to figure out who is her killer. It becomes quite a fun ride as she makes friend with Carter, the guy that lives in the dorm that she keeps waking up in and then starts connecting with how bitchy of a person she is to the people around her as well as embracing how avoiding her past has made her into this miserable person.

While the time loop isn’t really explained in the movie, it never really feels like it needs to either. Happy Death Day is at its best because of the humor that it delivers and the many different ways that Theresa changes throughout. With that said, Jessica Rothe captures her role as Theresa incredibly well. She has this charm and charisma that really adds so much to how she portrays the character. It also is rather comedic how she is the only one with the memory of all this and wakes up being different every time.

In reality, Happy Death Day is a really straight forward sort of movie. It delivers a few twists in her time loop and leaving the suspense in the air of whether she will escape her time loop or not. Its not so much that its scary but more that its a lot of fun to watch. Sure, the slasher bits can get a few jumps at the beginning but the threat of her being able to loop really does take away the horror of it. Still, its a different a type of horror film riding the line of horror comedy but a nice palate cleanser and really why I do love films that mix genres/subgenres so much.

Happy Death Day 2U (2019)

Director (and co-writer): Christopher Landon

Cast: Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Phi Vu, Suraj Sharma, Sarah Yarkin, Rachel Matthews, Ruby Modine, Steve Zissis, Charles Aitken, Laura Clifton

Tree Gelbman discovers that dying over and over was surprisingly easier than the dangers that lie ahead. – IMDB

While Happy Death Day should have been probably been a one movie deal and let it end at where it is, it was expected that with how well Happy Death Day did that it would get a sequel. Add it onto another unnecessary sequel. What the sequel aims to do now is give us the cause of Tree’s time loop in the first movie but this time, the equation has changed because that loop has caused a parallel dimension which brings in the help of the science students that caused in the first place who happen to be Carter’s roommate, Ryan and his friends. Tree needs to work with them to stop it and its a lot of the same as the first film with a lot of trial and error dying except this time mostly on her own terms instead of by the baby face killer.

The heart of Happy Death Day 2U is really on how charming Jessica Rothe’s character Tree is. The parallel dimension gives her another sort of revelation about her life. Personally, it brings in a little bit more seriousness to what should be more comedic but they do make it up with this montage of how she chooses to kill herself for each trial by the team to end the loop. Its a bigger cast to say the least and I do enjoy the dynamic of the science crew. They bring their own sort of humor.

The sequel is a lot of the same with some other stakes at hand but it feels pretty much the same and if anything, a little more silly than the first one but its just a fun little romp. Its definitely more sci-fi than horror in this more and more drama than comedy. Still, it was fairly entertaining. Not quite as good as the first one and not a necessary sequel by any means but its still pretty fun for my own standards. I just really hope they don’t do a third one because it really doesn’t need to dive even further.

That’s it for this double feature!
Have you seen Happy Death Day and the sequel? Thoughts?

Fantasia Festival 2019: Koko-di Koko-da (2019)

Koko-di Koko-da (2019)

Director (and writer): Johannes Nyholm

Cast: Leif Edlund, Ylva Gallon, Peter Belli, Brandy Litmanen, Morad Baloo Khatchadorian

Koko-di Koko-da is a 2019 Swedish-Danish horror fantasy about a couple who tries to reconnect on a camping trip but soon finds themselves stuck in a time loop with an odd entourage attacking them.

When a happy little family, where the couple Elin (Ylva Gallon) and Tobias (Leif Edlund) is still very in love and all enjoy taking their daughter,  goes on a little trip and end up getting a case of food poisoning that results in serious consequences. Three years later, the couple are still dealing with their emotions and decide to go on a camping trip to try to reconnect one last time. However, they end up in a time loop where entourage of three odd people, the leader (Peter Belli), the giant  (Morad Baloo Khatchadorian) and a weird girl, come to humiliate and kill them. As the husband wakes up each time from this nightmare, he tries to find a new way to avoid their tragic death.

Set in a time loop filled with death, humiliation and cheerful uplifting tune in the background, Koko-di Koko-da is strange. In its five or so loops that the story goes through, its a curious trap to say the least. If it wasn’t for the opening and closing sequences, it wouldn’t be quite so easy to link the events together especially why this particular entourage is haunting this couple. Symbolism is a big part of Koko-di Koko-da and it all sprouts in relation to the loss of their daughter. Every element is a part of the couple getting through this emotional trauma and whether the audience connects to those elements will be key to how much the film is appreciated. It can be fairly vague especially when its not only the curious trio that show up but also white cats crossing the path and attack dogs come into the equation. It takes away from the serious emotions between the couple but add this extra element of strangeness and mostly lead through Peter Belli’s over the top leader with this top hat, cane and a bright smile while being equally brutal in his ways.

Most of Koko-di Koko-da’s story revolves around the father and husband role Tobias being the main focus as the person with the knowledge, making his decisions in response to the previous loop, therefore also the one that is judged the most and giving his character most of the development as well. Leif Edlund does a good job with this character, starting with the first loop where he is mostly pathetic and weak, turning selfish and then finally finding the courage to lead the situation. However, the wife character Elin, played by Ylva Gallon isn’t disposable either. While her role is mostly reactive to Tobias and many times questioning his urgency and the reaction to a bad dream, her loop is one that feels much deeper, perhaps symbolizing her pain being on a different level and each going through their own form of torment causing them to fall further from each other.

Koko-di Koko-da is a film worth a lot of discussion. Its vague in its portrayal and symbolism. There are a lot of between and beyond the lines interpretations of each element. Its time loops while around five times or so runs the entire segment each time. Despite its changes each time, it does feel slightly repetitive. Only just slightly with one or two loops. However, there are some great elements to talk about that add charm. One of them is the pairing it with this repeating Koko-di Koko-da song that is very cheery children’s music. The second is 2 segments of story shown as a little theatre made out of paper cut bunny family projected on the theatre which is a child-like way to present a story that draws parallels to the reality which is extremely charming.

At the end of the day, Koko-di Koko-da is not for everyone. Its not a long film but it has a lot of depth. Perhaps one that is a bit too ambitious for its own good depending on its audience.

 

Fantasia Festival 2019: The Incredible Shrinking WKND (2019)

The Incredible Shrinking WKND (El Incredible Finde Menguante, 2019)

Director (and writer): Jon Mikel Caballero

Cast: Iria del Rio, Adam Quintero, Nadia de Santiago, Adrian Exposito,  Jimmy Castro, Irene Ruiz, Luis Tosar

The Incredible Shrinking Wknd is a 2019 drama about a girl going on a reunion weekend away at a cabin who ends up getting stuck in a time loop that decreases in time with each reset.

The incredible Shrinking WKND opens to a group of six friends who are having a reunion at the cabin. As they learn about each other’s current state and about their future plans, Alba (Iria del Rio) and Pablo (Adam Quintero) seem to be the couple who seem to be fine on the surface but after dinner, Pablo suggests to break up. As she goes for a hike the next day, she goes into the old weapons factory area, a point of interest for the group and ends up triggering a time loop where time freezes and she wakes up again on the car ride to the cabin. As Alba wakes up each time, she starts from enjoying what feels like an infinite time loop to realizing that it shrinks by the hour with every reset. What starts as a fun little time loop that she can be in control soon becomes a journey of self-discovery and  at 30, a late growing up to adulthood as she embraces her feelings, her friends and her love.

Let’s face it, time loop stories are tricky. They can get repetitive and they can get lost. Its hard to say that WKND doesn’t  get repetitive but the script remembers to always make each time a little different, especially in the first few loops and as Alba transitions in her different revelations from denial to finally wanting to make amends. It works through some of this by doing speed cuts of the crucial parts, putting more focus on the changes and the meaningful parts to see new discoveries and the character development for Alba. While the middle section does feel like it dwells a little too long and then picks some sections to focus on over and over again, it does try to put together the pieces at the end.

WKND is heavily focused on one character. While the other 4 friends and her boyfriend are very much present here and there in each loop in different ways, they all have their own new bits of information that gets revealed , Alba is the main focus. Iria del Rio is compelling in this role. Every reaction as she breaks down to her enthusiasm to her revelation and uncertainty of what will happen and trying to figure out how to escape the time loop becomes a journey that is satisfying because she becomes a character who grows and one that is worth fighting for as she strives to improve. Its a change from the girl that started this movie who didn’t seem to care about anyone, was insensitive, irresponsible and had no direction.

At the end of the day, WKND is a time loop movie with depth. It dials down to a good execution of the content and a close look at one character’s growth. However, all this is small compared to what makes this Spanish indie unique and that is its choice of how it presents the film. The constant narrowing screen is gradual and at first, might not even be noticeable. All the effect of time urgency as well as packing in the crucial details of the shot closer together gives it a somewhat claustrophobic feeling. Its a big question of what happens after, when there is no more hours of the same day to take away and how Alba will use that final hour. This final element makes cinematography stand out and is the truly unique element of this film experience.

The Incredible Shrinking WKND has an encore screening at Fantasia International Film Festival on July 22 at 4:35pm at the Hall Auditorium.