The Corner Penthouse

Happy Birthday To Me arrives on Blu-ray as part of Mill Creek Entertainment's Retro VHS Look Series, part of a growing trend of physical media releases with packaging designed to look like the VHS videocassettes of the 1980s and 1990s. I have reviewed several other titles in the series here on The Corner Penthouse.


Happy Birthday To Me (1981) is a Canadian slasher film of the '70s/early '80s, much like Black Christmas and Prom Night. After popular high school senior Virginia Wainwright (Melissa Sue Anderson) survives a freak accident, she starts to suffer from memory loss and traumatic blackouts. As she attempts to resume a normal life, something terrible is happening - her friends are ruthlessly murdered one-by-one. Will she be the next victim or is she the killer? The terrifying truth is finally uncovered at Virginia's 18th birthday party.


I saw this film a few times on premium cable and it's always been a favorite of mine. Sure, it's a bit disjointed, and some of the characters behave weirdly for no discernible reason (other than to provide the movie with some creepy moments/red herrings), but it's an enjoyable film with a killer twist ending. It's fun seeing Melissa Sue Anderson, best known as elder sister Mary Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie at the time, doing her best "scream queen" routine.


Many fans were upset with Sony's 2004 DVD release because it featured disco music over the opening credits instead of the original score. I'm happy to report that the original score has been restored here. I, for one, am grateful for this as that opening haunting piano piece is what I like most about this movie.


At a runtime of 1:50:45, Happy Birthday To Me is presented in its original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. On the audio side, there is only an English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track. There are no subtitles. As is the case with most Mill Creek Entertainment releases, there are no special features - just like the original videocassette!


The real "bonus feature" here is the vintage-looking VHS-inspired slipsleeve, with faux wear and tear, and fake "rental stickers" on it, while giving the appearance of a videocassette being pulled out from the right side (though the original VHS may have been in a bottom-loading box), complete with tape label side on the right spine. Here's a complete look at this special slipsleeve. Click on it to get a better look.


The front artwork is based on the original U.K. VHS box art, as seen below. The back of the slipsleeve seems to be a new creation done in vintage style, and not meant to resemble the original back VHS artwork. (Credit for the original VHS artwork goes to Flavorwire.)


The case artwork underneath is of a modern style, which means that the VHS-style slipsleeve may only be available for a limited time. In the photo below, the slipsleeve cover is on the left and the case artwork underneath is on the right. Yeah, it's that same creepy girl - who doesn't appear in the film (though I think she's supposed to be reminiscent of Melissa Sue Anderson) - who first appeared on Sony's 2004 DVD cover.


If you're not already aware of Mill Creek Entertainment, they are a budget company, which results in their products having a lower cost than the big studios. Right now, Happy Birthday To Me is listed on Amazon for a mere $7.50. The trade off for a cheaper price is that the majority of their releases tend not to have special features. If you want special features, and are willing to spend substantially more, Powerhouse Films' Indicator Series Blu-ray (a region-free import) includes an audio commentary; image gallery; trailer and TV spots; the alternative 2004 DVD movie soundtrack (the one with the temp Disco score); a DVD copy; and a 24-page booklet with extracts from the original press kit, advertising and promotion guide, and selected film reviews. Do keep in mine that that release costs over three times as much, and doesn't have the VHS-inspired slipsleeve, which is why I was interested in the Mill Creek Blu-ray. Ultimately, the choice is yours.


As of the time of this writing, the Retro VHS Look Series includes the following Blu-ray releases.




Images used come from the Internet Movie Database gallery of the film. The Blu-ray has been provided by Mill Creek Entertainment for review on this site.