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Here's a look at the new movie I saw this week.

Happy Death Day 2U
Starring: Jessica Rothe, Israel Broussard, Phi Vu, Suraj Sharma, Sarah Yarkin, Ruby Modine, and Rachel Matthews
Synopsis: Sequels are tricky, especially with a high concept kind of film. The first "Happy Death Day," which centered on a woman (Rothe) doomed to re-live her birthday time and again as she is murdered until she could solve the crime, was unexpected. It took the familiar "Groundhog Day" concept and added a layer of horror and humor. And it worked, especially thanks to Rothe in the lead role. Now two years later, we get a sequel. But how to take the same concept and make it feel fresh? Well that's the tricky part. In this case, the focus shifts a bit to the loveable roomate Ryan (Vu), who is working on a time-bending science experiment with his partners (Sharma and Yarkin) that is responsible for creating the loop in the first place. When he tries to fix it, things go awry and Tree (Rothe) is thrust back to her birthday, only the circumstances of the day have changed. And she's faced with a new challenge, and a big decision, as she literally has to keep dying to save lives and put time right. Early in the production, as the film began the whole looping over again, I started to wonder if this was a good idea. Sequels often fail to live up to the original, and with so many challenges in this format, that seemed destined to be the case. However, once we got into the heart of the story, the changes made, and of course the great performance from Rothe, was enough to grab me once again. As with the first, this had a good balance of humor and some horror elements, expanding the world and creating some fun sequences. This is a good cast, and they make the most of the format. I was so taken with what they'd done by the end that the potential set up for a continuation of the world had me intrigued as well. This isn't a deep film, but it's a fun one that knows what it is and makes the most of it.
Rating: PG-13 for violence, language, sexual material and thematic elements.
Verdict: Three stars out of four.

Upcoming Releases:
Friday, February 22: "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World," "Fighting With My Family," "Run the Race"

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