Bloody Birthday
Picture: C Sound: C Extras: D Film: C-
Nothing liked possessed children on the kill, whether by
Satan or Aliens. This kind of scenario
is usually hard to mess up, but Ed Hunt’s Bloody Birthday (1981) has
three children born in 1970 when Saturn has an eclipse. Too bad it did not spark a good script. The children are never menacing, the story
has next to no suspense and the film is sort of stuck between the freedom of
the Horror of the 1970s and formulas of 1980s cinema. They and the rest of the cast seem instead to be possessed by the
ability to give bad acting performances.
“Boring” Birthday is more like it and trying to have another
title in the John Carpenter holiday Horror sweepstakes is lame here.
The anamorphically enhanced 1.78 x 1 image is old with a
lack of depth, poor color, poor detail and an aged print. I doubt restoration would wipe away the
plain shots and cheapness of the production, but it was at least shot on film. The Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono shows its age and
is indistinct, with a forgettable score to boot. The only extras are other trailers and a brief interview with
director Hunt who is happier with the film than you are likely to be.
- Nicholas Sheffo
