Happy Birthday to Me (1981)

Film details

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Year1981
CountryCanada
GenreSlasher
TypeMovie
Runtime111m
CastMelissa Sue Anderson, Glenn Ford, Lawrence Dane, Sharon Acker, Frances Hyland, Tracey E. Bregman, Jack Blum, Matt Craven, Lenore Zann, David Eisner

Review

"One of the strongest entries in the 80s splatter canon, Happy Birthday to Me is both quite simplistic and unusually sophisticated for a slasher. On the one hand, it's clearly driven by the petulant, juvenile pangs of youth and will resonate with anyone who was ever jilted on their birthday by a group of friends (hopefully it doesn't resonate too much because things will get awkward and bloody in a hurry). But on the other hand, this one sets itself apart from its contemporaries by spinning one hell of a yarn around this concept, as it's lined with enough twists and turns that would even make giallo masters blush. In many ways, Happy Birthday to Me is a perfect stopgap between that genre and the standard issue American body count flick; it really can't be claimed as either, which makes it all the more intriguing." - Brett Gallman, Oh, The Horror

Ranking history

The 1,000 Greatest Horror Films

EDITIONS IN TOP 1,00011
HIGHEST#5512017
LOWEST#9152024
Top 1,000Outside Top 1,000Missing ranking data

Dashed lines indicate missing ranking data. Select a point to view that year's published list. The 1,000 Greatest Horror Films list was not updated in 2022.

Lists featuring this film 32 lists

80shorror.net's Derek Schweigert's The Top 200 Best Horror Movies of the 1980s2018Ranked#135
Bloody Disgusting's Becky Belzire's Terror from the Tundra - 20 Awesome Canadian Horror Movies!2017Ranked#13
Bullshit.IST's Michael Gursky's The 20 Best Slashers of All Time2016Ranked#17
Cinema Du Meep's 26 Favourite Slashers2009Unranked—
Cool Top Tens' Top 50 Best Horror Movies of the 80sRanked#44
Creepy Catalog's Chrissy Stockton's Best Cheesy & Campy 80s Horror Movies2022Unranked—
Entertainment Weekly's 16 Little-Known Horror Gems2014Unranked—
Esquire's Nick Schager & Bria McNeal's The 60 Best Horror Films from the 1980s2024Ranked#19
Final Girl Shocktoberfest Poll2017Ranked#81
GamesRadar+'s George Wales' The 30 greatest slasher movies2014Ranked#27
Goregirl's Favourite Horror Films of the 1980s2013Ranked#120
Hollie Horror's 1980-19892021Ranked#133
Hollie Horror's Canadian Horror2020Ranked#15
Hollie Horror's Slasher Showdown2020Ranked#31
HorrorMovies.ca Forum's Top 100 Greatest Horror SlashersRanked#50
HorrorMovies.ca Forum's Top 300 horror films that MUST be seen before you die2012Unranked—
JarvisCity's 15 Best Horror Movies Of 19812017Ranked#14
JarvisCity's 30 Greatest '80s Slasher Movies2015Ranked#13
JarvisCity's 50 Greastest Slasher Movies Of All Time2017Ranked#25
Josh Keown's My Top 50 Slashers of All Time2012Ranked#43
Mike Mayo's VideoHound's Horror Show - 999 Hair-Raising, Hellish, and Humorous Movies1998Unranked—
Murray Leeder's Horror Film - A Critical Introduction2018Unranked—
NewNowNext's The Backlot's The 40 Greatest Horror Movies Of The 1980s2015Ranked#6
PCBreakdown's Top 500 Horror Movies2014Ranked#406
PopOptiq's Ricky da Conceição's Greatest Slasher Films (1970-1990)2012Ranked#29
Sir Plebeian's Top 100 Slashers2013Ranked#81
Taste of Cinema's David Bronstein's The 25 Best Slasher Movies of All Time2015Ranked#18
The Backlot's Top 40 Horror Movies of the 1980s2013Ranked#7
Too Scary To Watch's Best 80's Horror Films2011Unranked—
Vegan Voorhees' The 100 Greatest Slasher Movies2014Ranked#80
WhatCulture's Jesse Gumbarge's 20 Cult Horror Movies You Must See Before You Die2015Ranked#19
You Wanna See Something Really Scary A 365 Day Guide to Must See Horror Films by W.P. Spence2013Unranked—