Jessica Rothe

  • Valley Girl (2020)

    Valley Girl (2020)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, December 2020) Remaking 1980s cultural touchstone Valley Girl – terrible idea or awful idea? As it turns out – neither: director Rachel Lee Goldenberg gives just enough of a different spin to her film to become its own thing while clearly paying homage to its inspiration. Cleverly, this Valley Girl ends up being a recollection from a late-2010ish mom talking about her own childhood to a twenty-first century teen – meaning that we get musical numbers, lavish use of a 1980s soundtrack (but new age 1980s, not necessarily the most irritating stuff), self-consciously romantic/mythologic recreation of the era and more than a few forward-looking jokes. The narrative isn’t anything special and unthreatening lead actor Josh Whitehouse isn’t Nicolas Cage, but Jessica Rothe does rather well as the protagonist, and there are enough familiar faces in the film for a few pleasant surprises. Where this Valley Girl does much better is as a retro-pop jukebox-musical – the framing device gives permission to just enjoy the material for what it is – a gentle colourful bubble-gum concoction that is not and will not become a classic, but is fun enough for a spin.

  • Happy Death Day 2U (2019)

    Happy Death Day 2U (2019)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, October 2019) The first Happy Death Day was a tricky mixture of comedy and horror, and it took a while before it started firing on all cylinders. Happy Death Day 2U isn’t that different, although the first few minutes do promise a more interesting sidequel than the outright sequel it ultimately settles on. But there’s only so much deviation that a series can tolerate, and this sequel does ultimately change the tone and genre of the series a bit, going for a thankfully more comedic approach and reaches for outright science fiction (even if nonsensical) as an explanation for its time-looping weirdness. Jessica Rothe once again captures our attention as the heroine (once again hitting the film’s peak during a bouncy montage), especially given how Happy Death Day 2U unusually digs deeper into her dramatic back-story and provides her with a heartbreaking choice. The result is fun bouncy entertainment with enough depth to it to keep things interesting. Toning down the serial killer shtick only improves the sequel, and while it does fall prey to a certain sense of deja vu, it’s an impressive continuation by itself. Writer-director Christopher Landon is a clever filmmaker, and the results here outdo anything we may have hoped for a sequel.

  • Happy Death Day (2017)

    Happy Death Day (2017)

    ByChristian Sauvé Movie Review

    (On Cable TV, October 2018) Derivatives of Groundhog Day’s time-loop premise are now commonplace, and it takes a little bit more to avoid charges of being derivative. Happily, Happy Death Day eventually gets there: A comedic horror take on the reliving-a-day idea, it’s a film that eventually finds its groove and runs with it. It doesn’t start that promisingly, what with a college student waking up next to a one-night stand and going through a school day (that happens to be her birthday) before being brutally murdered … and starting over again. The expected scenes of time-loop movies are there, but there is a sharp edge to the horror element as our protagonist gets murdered time and time again. While the first half-hour of the film is a bit perfunctory, the film eventually improves, roughly at the same time as we gain an appreciation the lead actress. Jessica Rothe doesn’t have much name recognition, but this is going to change with her performance here, as she goes from an obnoxious sorority girl to a likable protagonist over the first half of the film and then keeps our interest for the remainder of the story. The “Confident” song montage is when the film finally comes into focus. A dark comic sense of humour from director Christopher Landon and writer Scott Lobdell certainly helps keep things interesting despite the film’s low-budget. Unhappily, the film eventually starts ignoring its own plot points (not much is made of the protagonist becoming weaker throughout the loops) but the ride is a fun one despite some third-act weirdness. I ended up liking Happy Death Day more than I thought at the beginning, and even more than I thought after twenty minutes of it. Even as a Groundhog Day derivative, it’s actually worth a look.