There is a problem with many modern horror films in that they are almost all exactly the same film. A group of teens unlock some evil power or monster and are killed off one by one in boring, jump scare fashion. The genre is having a small renaissance period in the last few years, but the majority of horrors released at the cinema are not good. Happy Death Day (2017) follows the template of these films for the most part. A scary killer is chasing after a young teen girl and does so by being a jump scare fiend. However, Happy Death Day put itself above these other horrors with a really interesting and fun concept and it really, really worked. It was a very entertaining and downright fun film, and Happy Death Day 2 U (2019) continues the fun and silliness that the first film was great at. The film opens with Ryan Phan (Phi Vu) being murdered but waking up back at the start of that same day, exactly how Tree Gelbman (Jessica Rothe) did in the original film. After Tree finds this out, she discovers that the reason this was occurring was because of a science project that Ryan and his classmates Samar Ghosh (Suraj Sharma) and Andrea Morgan (Sarah Yarkin) had created. She then makes them attempt to sort it out, but something goes wrong, and she wakes up on the same day she was continuously murdered in the first film, but this time she is trapped in a different dimension. In this dimension her boyfriend, Carter (Israel Broussard), is dating her friend Danielle (Rachel Matthews) but her mother is still alive. So, the film follows Tree and the group as they attempt to stop the time loop, decide which dimension they wish to stay in whilst also avoiding being murdered by an unknown killer.
As you can probably tell from my description of the film, this plot is extremely convoluted and is definitely the weakest part of the film. The first film had a simple but effective concept and didn’t try to go into in depth detail about why this Groundhog Day scenario is occurring, it just was. This kept the film from becoming confusing or bloated, it stayed simple and it was better for it. But when it comes to the sequel it falls into the trap of trying to explain a little too much. I do have some sympathy for the filmmakers as it is an almost unavoidable aspect of the film. If they made this film and just had the same scenario occur with no explanation again it would be jarring and pointless and so they had to try and explain it. Unfortunately, I think the explanation they do come up with is pretty confusing and bloated which does drag the film down a little. One thing I will say is that it feels like the filmmakers realise how silly and convoluted the plot is because they don't really take it seriously at all. In fact, the whole film is pretty much an exercise in not taking itself seriously. The film is supposedly a horror film, but it is not even slightly scary. The first one wasn't particularly scary either, but it is downright terrifying in comparison to the sequel. Instead, Happy Death Day 2 U takes the comedic aspects of the original film and heightens them and by doing this the film becomes 100% a comedy, and a pretty funny comedy at that. There were a few jokes which did not land at all, but the majority of the jokes were funny and delivered well and there were a couple of laugh out loud jokes placed in there. This silliness and comedic style the film takes on does mean that the plot takes a back seat, but that is okay because it isn't the most important aspect of the film. The film is trying to be a fun ride and it definitely succeeds in doing that.
The reason that this film works on the whole is down to one thing. That is the performance of Jessica Rothe as our heroine Tree Gelbman. She is superb in the role, just like she was in the first film, and I would be fine with the film being double the length just so I could see more of her performance. The rest of the performances are all okay. No one really stands out as being particularly great, but no one is terrible either. There is one performance that is a little hammy, but I can't say who it is because it would spoil the film so I will just leave it there. Jessica Rothe is a step above everyone else in this film. Her comedic acting is bloody brilliant. Her comedic timing is spot on and her facial expressions are genuinely fantastic. The best example of her great performance comes during a montage of Tree killing herself in order to restart the day. Not only are the escalating levels of her deaths very funny (especially a moment where she dives into a wood chipper) but her performance throughout this sequence is the best part of the film. Every face she pulls and interaction she has is perfect for the tone of the film and I found myself laughing pretty much non-stop for the whole montage. Although she excels in the comedic moments of the film, she is also very good when it comes to the more emotional moments of the film. She is able to get across the emotional turmoil she is going through and make you feel sympathy for the character in these moments, and the next minute she will be making you laugh without fail. Although I don't think this film needs a sequel, I wouldn't be entirely opposed to the idea if it meant that I could see more of Rothe as this character because she is endlessly watchable in the role.
Happy Death Day 2 U succeeds in being a good and entertaining sequel without ever outdoing the original film. The plot is far to convoluted and the first twenty minutes of the film I found myself questioning what the hell was going on. But the film manages to overcome the short coming of the plot due to its very funny comedic style that it chose to run with over the horror elements that were the weaker part of the first film. Jessica Rothe is endlessly entertaining to watch and no one else puts in a bad performance which means you never find yourself struggling to watch an actor as I often do in other modern horror films of this ilk. At the end of the day I really enjoy the concept of these films and so unless this sequel completely turned it around and made wholesale changes, I was always going to enjoy myself. I would definitely recommend this film, especially if you're looking for something which is a fun time and that will put a smile on your face from start to finish. The best thing I can say for the entertaining nature of the film is that the film went by really, really quickly feeling more like an hour than its hour and forty-minute runtime. So, if you're looking for Groundhog Day with murder, watch Happy Death Day. If you're looking for Groundhog Day with murder and batshit science mumbo jumbo, watch Happy Death Day 2 U, I promise you will have a great time.