Bloody Birthday

The slasher horror genre was well underway in 1980, but the killer-kid subgenre was very under the radar, virtually disappearing after "The Bad Seed." That all changed when filmmakers mimicked 1978's "Halloween" and merged it with the maniac-children-on-the-loose scenario. Thus, "Bloody Birthday" came to fruition... and disappeared from theaters quickly after its initial release.

It seems audiences weren't ready for young kids as killers in 1980, but Arrow Video presents this nasty - yet, at times, oh so hilarious – and little-known horror flick. The initial Blu-ray came out in 2012, but Arrow's 2018 Collector's Edition upgrades the restoration with a 2K scan.

"Bloody Birthday" shows viewers an event from ten years prior, when three infants are born on the same day during a solar eclipse, before flashing forward in time to see the 10-year-olds in action. The three brats have banded together to cause murder and mayhem in their small town, unbeknownst to the unsuspecting adults who think the children are cute and harmless.

The sheer ridiculousness of "Bloody Birthday" has to be seen to be believed, and who knew that young children could have the mega-strength to carry out such horrific murders. The also film looks like a TV Movie of the Week... the only variant on that filmmaking style is the inclusion of three fairly graphic sex scenes and gratuitous nudity.

Two carryover special features from the prior Blu-ray are included. One in particular, "Starships and Killer Brains," discusses the career of director Ed Hunt. But it's the brand new extras that fare the best:

"Bloody Babysitter" – a new interview with actress Lori Lethin, who played Joyce the babysitter in "Bloody Birthday"

"Bad Seeds and Body Counts" – a highly interesting interview with film journalist Chris Alexander where he discusses the underground "killer kid" horror movie subgenre

"Bloody Birthday"
Blu-ray
$29.95
www.arrowvideo.co.uk