Happy Death Day 2U is the unexpected direct sequel to 2016’s Groundhog Day time loop meets a slasher film original (just called Happy Death Day). I was not expecting a sequel to that clever horror comedy but was not against the idea either. The first was a low-key fun little flick and the trailers suggest a sequel at least as clever.
And, yeah, they struck twice with a clever premise… this time one of the incidental side characters the lead character ran into every day of her time loop is himself now in a time loop. This is something Tree (the lead from the first film) completely understands and is on-board with helping. After all, she’s an expert by now. But then things go sideways and Tree winds up back in her original time loop all over again, but now things are slightly different from the first flick’s repeating day. The movie has gone from Groundhog Day to Back to the Future 2 (directly referenced in the film).
The flick has turned from a horror movie to a science fiction film. It’s now a twisty time travel / multi-dimensional sci-fi story with a subplot about a masked slasher. Or maybe it’s a slasher film with a heavy focus on science? It’s hard to say… but it’s also a heist film and a relationship drama and introduces ethical and moral decisions.
In other words, this sequel has more plot than a dozen bad horror movie sequels. Maybe too much plot and conundrums and twists and reveals. Which isn’t a bad thing but the movie doesn’t’ quite catch all the balls it juggles. It got a little too convoluted and a little too “now we’re doing this? I thought this movie was about over!!”. I respect the hell out of it, but I think it needed to be a bit tighter. Keep all those balls juggled.
But, hey, the lead actress (who was so good in part 1) returns (along with every other cast member, some of whom died in the first flick). She is played by Jessica Rothe and she handles the crazy comedy and some surprisingly good emotional scenes with charm and gusto. She’s a real talent at whatever she’s asked to do.
So, yeah, this isn’t as good a flick as the first (which was fun but not great) but it’s still pretty good. I enjoyed how it changed genres and I respect the verve they put into making this one. I just wish it had held together a little better for the full run-time. Nice attempt and I’m already looking forward to part three.
Score: 78