Bloody Birthday

"The nightmare begins with the kids next door."

1981 1h 25m EN

😐

5.9

MID

★5.9TMDB · 175

Horror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In 1970, three children are born at the height of a total eclipse. Due to the sun and moon blocking Saturn, which controls emotions, they have become heartless killers ten years later, and are able to escape detection because of their youthful and innocent facades. A boy and his teenage sister become endangered when they stumble onto the bloody truth.

“The nightmare begins with the kids next door.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Lori Lethin
Joyce Russel
Melinda Cordell
Mrs. Brody
Julie Brown
Beverly Brody
Susan Strasberg
Miss Viola Davis
José Ferrer
Doctor
Joe Penny
Mr. Harding
Bert Kramer
Sherriff James Brody
Elizabeth Hoy
Debbie Brody

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ed Hunt
Writers: Ed Hunt, Barry Pearson
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

85 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

45 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ed Hunt, shot by Stephen L. Posey. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Arlon Ober. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Ann E. Mills shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Lori Lethin and Melinda Cordell and Julie Brown carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The nightmare begins with the kids next door.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0082084 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ed Hunt directs. Stephen L. Posey behind the camera. Arlon Ober scores. Ann E. Mills cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

185 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
245 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Ed Hunt, shot by Stephen L. Posey. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Arlon Ober. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Ann E. Mills shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Lori Lethin and Melinda Cordell and Julie Brown carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The nightmare begins with the kids next door.".
8IMDB entry: tt0082084 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 8 themes, including "birthday", "babysitter", "elementary school", "murder".

The technical file

Cinematography: Stephen L. Posey
Original score: Arlon Ober
Editing: Ann E. Mills
Makeup / hair: Julie Purcell
Runtime: 85 min · 1h 25m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Bloody Birthday (1981)

Also by

Ed Hunt

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

tmdb179960752017-02-14
★ 7/10
'Bloody Birthday' is one of those movies that surprisingly ages well enough to remain watchable nowadays. Not a masterpiece for sure, but still entertaining and surprisingly enough, it doesn't really have a lot of unintentionally funny scenes. I know it's a shocker if we keep in mind that this is a low budget flick from the early 80s about a group of evil children who kill people. But trust me, the movie manages to remain respectable and watchable for the most part. The story revolves around three children who are born during a a total eclipse. According to astrology, during eclipses, the sun and the moon block Saturn, which controls emotions. As a consequence, the three children who are born that day, eventually become uncaring and evil. Since they don't experience any feelings of remorse whatsoever, these 10-year-old kids gang up against basically everyone who stands in their way, including their own parents and siblings... and kill them! The body count increases day after day and the police authorities believe that there's a psychopath lurking around the place. In the meantime, Debbie, Curtis and Steven, don't hesitate to keep butchering people. I was expecting some hilariously bad scenes, but the movie proved me wrong. True, it's not exactly what most people would consider a 'serious' horror movie, but if I have to be fair, I'd say that the story is decently executed. One of the most important reasons why one would normally expect laughable situations (like I did), it's because in these kind of movies in which the main villains are children, the young actors tend to be plain awful and they make the whole thing laughable. Let's face it: kids tend to be horrible actors, which is understandable and we can't blame them for that. But to my surprise, the three young actors who played the merciless killers in this film, looked very disturbing and not at all funny. The rest of the actors are also good and if you're a George Clooney fan, you can see his uncle playing a doctor in this movie. Yeah, I know right?... who cares?. Also, Julie Brown, the great actress, singer, comedienne and gay icon, gives a solid performance as the naughty older sister and in case anyone is interested in nudity: she also strips in one of the scenes and she looks great naked. Too bad she didn't have more time on the screen though! Julie is 'absolutely fabulous':P So basically, this movie is fine if you're in the mood for some modest horror from the 80s. My only objection regarding 'Bloody Birthday' would be the way to justify the children's motives. This is perhaps one of the lowest points of the film. Let's see: if children who were born during an eclipse end up being heartless killers, then how come these three were the only ones who actually murdered people? I'm sure there were other children who had been born the same day... and during other days of total eclipse too, oh well!. Overall, no big deal, it's just a simple observation, that's all. I've seen worse, trust me. Take 'The Children' (1980) for example, in which the precocious killer get their evilness after being turned into zombies by toxic cloud. No, believe me, 'Bloody Birthday' is far more decent and if you enjoy simple slashers, you're going to enjoy this one very much.
Wuchak2022-09-26
★ 6/10
Born under a bad sign In a Southern Cal town people are dying in curious circumstances with everything pointing to some unlikely culprits. “Bloody Birthday” (1981) mixes the killer kid genre with slasher flick and works well enough. It came out a few years before the “Children of the Corn” series started, but it’s not like there weren’t plenty of predecessors going back to the early 60s. For instance, the Star Trek TV series had two episodes with sinister children, “Miri” and “The Children Shall Lead.” Then there’s “The Brood,” which debuted a couple years earlier. Elizabeth Hoy (Debbie) and Billy Jayne (Curtis) are particularly effective as the diabolical offspring. Meanwhile Julie Brown stands out on the feminine front as Beverly with a memorable scene reminiscent of Tom Cruise in “Risky Business” (1983), if you know what I mean. As far as the protagonist goes, Lori Lethin is winsome as Joyce with her Dorothy Hamill hairdo. There are a couple of memorable scenes, like Timmy locked in the metal cabinet and the junkyard sequence. The movie runs 1 hour, 25 minutes, and was shot in Glendale, California, which borders Los Angeles to the north and is east of Burbank. GRADE: B-