If you’ve ever thought to yourself, “Out of that early wave of slashers, BLOODY BIRTHDAY doesn’t get nearly enough attention,” you’re absolutely right. 

While admittedly silly, BLOODY BIRTHDAY, out today on DVD from Severin Films, has it all: killer kids, astrological explanations, the requisite post-HALLOWEEN steals, a fast pace and a high body count. It’s the rare early-’80s slasher that still retains the sense of fun many claim to have felt on first viewing, and it’s all thanks to the perfect performances put in by its three little devils.

The film sees a trio of children in a small suburb all born on the same day, during an eclipse. Ten years later, their joint birthday party is approaching—and their murderous appetites are growing. As Joyce Russell (Lori Lethin), the astrology-obsessed high-school gal and lone accuser of the villainous trio, ridiculously explains, the eclipse done left Debbie (Elizabeth Hoy), Curtis (Billy Jacoby) and Steven (Andy Freeman) emotionless and cold-blooded.

Pouncing on their urges, and avoiding the suspicion of most everyone thanks to their age and fresh faces, the three bypass both subtlety and sneakiness, going for it in spectacular fashion as they dispatch two teens making out in an open grave (of course!) with a jump rope and taking down Debbie’s sheriff dad in broad daylight, to name two. Curtis, however, is undeniably the smoothest of the pack. He struts along in his Barracuda jacket, revolver in tow, like no other 10-year-old on the block. In a grand display of showmanship, he attempts both a vehicular rundown and doing away with all his party’s guests via poisonous cake. Jacoby’s smug turn is a child performance to be treasured, for sure.

For those already endeared to BLOODY BIRTHDAY’s many highpoints, the question with Severin’s brand new special edition will be how it compares to those already available. Transfer-wise, it blows VCI’s previous disc out of the water, giving you a much clearer presentation—plus, the fact that it contains any special features at all already one-ups that previous release. The first supplement is a video interview with actress Lethin, who is good-humored about the film and seems to remember her time on the production fondly, making for a light and fun bit of remembrance.

The same cannot be said for the 50-minute audio-only interview with director Ed Hunt, who takes up a very small amount of that time discussing BLOODY BIRTHDAY itself. With the distinct air of not looking back on the film with much appreciation (what?!), Hunt mostly, and dryly, discusses much of his other work. While interesting at times—especially in relation to his interest in science fiction and the accuracy of his alien films in relation to the famous Roswell incidents—it gets to be a bit much, especially with only one image on screen the entire time. The final feature is, as titled, “A Brief History of Slashers,” by GOING TO PIECES author Adam Rockoff. It’s a quick and worthwhile tutorial, despite some of the onscreen posters and other visual aids not matching up with the particular films being discussed.

Despite the DVD not knocking it out of the park features-wise, the treat here is having a brand new and good-looking way to introduce friends to, and shed some much-deserved love upon, BLOODY BIRTHDAY. It’s not exactly a scarefest, but the film is trashy, at times hilariously mean-spirited (these kids can really whale on folks) and truly is a killer-kids entry to be remembered. Seriously, do eat the cake.

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