The Birthday

You may have noticed that the reviews for this movie or either really high or really low. This is weird in almost good weird way. First start off by saying that this is a very cool looking movie, it's shot well, but it's visually intriguing and artistic. You can tell it's low budget, but they make up for it in uniqueness and atmosphere.

This movie would be a lot more enjoyable if English isn't your first language I think, but if English is your language, I recommend watching it overdubbed in another language with English subtitles. I know that sounds crazy but let me explain.

The acting in this movie isn't great, mainly because Corey Feldman takes his character too far. He plays this really shy and nervous nerdy guy, but to the point where he's acting in a way no human would ever act. That alone is enough to make this movie frustrating. Even the scenes where he's talking to his girlfriend, and his friend, it's like he's talking to people he's never met in his life. It really makes you dislike him and everything that's happening, but there are so many little things that you will like and you keep watching.

The other thing I noticed was the way the characters talk to each other and what they're saying just doesn't work. And it's not necessarily the writing that's bad, because the premise is interesting enough, and quirky enough. This is a Spanish movie, filmed in Barcelona, Spanish director, and a lot of the actors and extras are from Spain as well. I think if I had watched this in any other language I would've loved it, but in English it's annoying.

It's not so much what they're saying but how they're saying it, and Corey Feldman's delivery. If you could find this overdubbed in any other language with English subtitles I say go for it. I would love to see someone remake this, literally anyone, but preferably someone remake it in another language.

I don t believe much of the reviews seen here, i think that they are written by the crew of the movie. In Sitges, 2 years ago, all the crew was in the cinema during the movie: they were the only ones to applaud, to clap their hands and to "like" the movie. I've seen thousands of movies, and this one was the one that disappointed me the most and bored me the most on a cinema. It s boring, no implication at all from the viewers and ultra long, so you want it to end but it never happens. You spend all the movie time expecting for some climax but that never happens. As a friend, a lover of cinema, a huge fan of fantastic and horror movies, don t waste no minute in this garbage.

I also got to see the movie at Sitges and I am perplexed. I agree with my Italian counterpart on the "love or hate" stance but I believe that the movie still has to grow on us all. The tempo is awkward but it's compensated by the brilliant sound and camera movements that keep us inside the movie's technique, something I believe Eugenio Mira intended for when he made the movie. I would say once again that it is too soon to judge "The Birthday" when, for now, it is heading to be a cult movie, indeed similar to Donnie Darko (my all time favorite), that has still to be seen and compared to similar movies that are trying to grasp a new style of cinema that young filmmakers are trying to institute in the new millennium. Last but not least, I want to point out that the actors are great specially taking into account the fact that the movie was made on a low budget in Spain. Corey Feldman makes me wonder why he disappeared for a decade from mainstream movies ( "The Birthday" looks like one of them, anyway...) but I believe that with this movie he has a made a great comeback playing a role that suits him well and that probable only he could represent. Check it out dudes! THE cult movie of the year (and it's only just started!)

In this movie definitely didn't happen what I was expecting (since I didn't read the summary).

The leading actor is darn good, even though u have to get used to his very unique type of cringy personality he's portraying. Some of his lines are pretty funny.

The events in this movie get out of hand at one point and in the end it had me leaving with the thought: "Okay... Did the world really need this movie ?! On the other hand, it really does have something about it."

So, maybe watch it, but don't be disappointed if it just leaves you shaking your head afterwards. The plot really is something else.

Preparing for a special birthday party, a man's attempts at controlling the situation are undone by a series of incidents that threaten his proposal plans which are even further hindered by the realization that a cult is actively using the hotel for their own means forcing him to stop their plans as well.

This was intriguing enough if somewhat problematic genre effort. Among the better aspects found here is the strong central setup that provides this one with the kind of quirky and offbeat energy it thrives on. With the majority of the first half presents the celebrated birthday party that goes from one awkward setup to another as he tries to go about making everything right for his girlfriend in front of her family as they celebrate the occasion with a lavish extravaganza filled with high-end drinks, food, and live entertainment, this sets the stage for what's going on quite nicely. As everything happening here is a direct result of his meek personality misconstruing everything and getting into bigger confrontations against the high-society demands on her parents throwing the party, this gets carried out the longer he's together with others there as the night starts getting strange including unexpected power-outages, mysterious guests gatecrashing, and the gradual intrusion of the cult which leads into a mind-blowingly over-the-top finale. The main thing with all of this is the pacing is so egregiously off that it becomes maddening waiting for something to happen. This is far more in the vein of a quirky black comedy than outright horror for the majority of its running time as we see him wander around the party trying to make things right by his girlfriend so that he can potentially propose to her at the celebrations, yet instead of being scary or funny, it becomes somewhat grating. With his somewhat irritating voice for these scenes and the prominence of his part of the film, this can make for a very tiring and frustrating experience as much as the extravagant length. There's little reason for this to be two hours with the different tidbits and subplots at play here all bringing the running time of this one to a longer degree than it needs to. Along with the low-budget nature of everything, these all manage to bring this one down overall.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.