Corey Feldman‘s cult classic feature is finally hitting the big screen.
Feldman stars in 2004 film “The Birthday,” directed by Eugenio Mira. The feature made its world premiere at the Sitges International Film Festival in 2004 but was essentially lost and never viewed in theaters after its initial festival circuit tour.
Now, 20 years later, “The Birthday” is getting a 4K ultra high definition theatrical release from Drafthouse Films.
“Way back in 2005, during the first-ever Fantastic Fest, we booked ‘The Birthday’ [for its U.S. premiere],” Alamo Drafthouse Founder and Fantastic Fest Director Tim League told IndieWire. “That movie and that now twenty-year relationship with director Eugenio Mira, in no small measure, crystallized the personality of the festival. Twenty years later, I am beyond thrilled to finally herald, ‘The 4K restoration is coming out this year!’”
The film will open in theaters throughout North America this fall. The North American rights to “The Birthday” were negotiated by Drafthouse Films’ CEO, Nick Savva, along with Sandra Tapis Diaz and Ibon Cormanzana from Spain’s Arcadian Motion Pictures.
Shot in real time, the horror-comedy stars Feldman as Norman, a man who attends his girlfriend’s father’s birthday party. He’s then blindsided by the fact that the party is actually a gathering of a doomsday cult preparing for the birth of their god.
In addition to Feldman, Erica Prior and Jack Taylor also star. The film has a script by director Mira and Mikel Alvariño.
After its initial festival screenings, “The Birthday” found a second life on YouTube thanks to a bootleg version being uploaded. The film slowly built a cult following over the last 20 years amongst genre fans and notable champions including Elijah Wood, Jason Blum, and Jordan Peele, who actually programmed “The Birthday” at Film Society of Lincoln Center in 2023 for its New York premiere.
At the time, Peele described the film as “a cinematic marvel that demands captivation and will never relent to your expectations. A true ‘what-the-f-did-I-just-watch’ experience. Feldman at his best.”
Both Feldman and director Mira were in attendance for the 2023 screening.
Feldman told Entertainment Weekly that “The Birthday” release is “the coolest thing I could ever have to look forward to.” Feldman credited Peele for reviving the interest in “The Birthday” leading up to its 4K release.
“[Peele and I] immediately became fast friends, and he said, ‘What are you doing these days? What are you up to?’ I said, ‘Well, this and that.’ I said, ‘It’s a bummer, the one movie that I really always wanted you to see, I wanted everybody to see, was “The Birthday,” and it’s a shame it never got released,’” Feldman said. “And he said, ‘Well, how do I see it?’ I said, ‘Well, the only way would be for you to come over to my house and watch it because I only have one copy.’ Because it never came out on DVD, it never came out on Blu-ray, it was never released in the theaters, it was never released anywhere in America, quite sadly. It was only released in Germany and in Spain. And so he said, ‘Well, I want to see it.’”
After viewing “The Birthday” years ago, Peele told Feldman that it was a “cinematic masterpiece” and it was Peele’s inclusion of the feature in his Film Society of Lincoln Center program that led to the Drafthouse Films restoration.
“And here we are: Alamo Drafthouse Theaters is releasing the film this fall in theaters.… I think there’s something like 40 theaters to start off, but we’ll see what happens,” Feldman said. “I’m hoping that it gets a tremendous response as I expect it will. It is a brilliant film, and I’m very, very proud of it.”
