The holiday season is all about positive energy and, of course, a chance for moviegoers to get out the stack of Christmas movies they have been meaning to see. However, even during the holiday season, some of us prefer to strike a balance between joy and scary when it comes to films. Meaning, wanting to experience the good Christmas movies but also the unconventional stories that provide a seemingly horrifying twist and challenge our outlook on the holiday traditions and rituals. Here's a list of slasher Christmas films—be warned of the extreme blood and violence!
Christmas Bloody Christmas (2022)
Christmas Bloody Christmas follows Tori, a record store owner and her employee Robee goes out on a double date with her friends on Christmas night Eve, to drink and enjoy the night. Their fun plans don't last long when a malfunctioned robotic Santa Claus embarks on a violent spree to paint the whole town red with blood. Tori and her date are now tasked with the difficult job of stopping the maniacal robot from taking lives and making Christmas a grieving one.
Robots being villains is a very common trope these days but Christmas Bloody Christmas does it differently, as it ruins our childhood memories associated with Santa and fears of technology at the same time by showing us a hazardous robot dressed up as a symbol of joy. Riley Dandy, who is frequently seen in romantic Christmas movies', performance stands out and is memorable, as a fierce protagonist pitted against a blood-hungry Santa Claus. Although the movie doesn't get distracted from the common killer Santa trope, it gets creative in sequences and sets up a gory narrative well. Visually, the movie is soaked in neon and dramatic lights, which gives the movie its unique aesthetics, and heightens the horror atmosphere.
Christmas Evil (1980)
Traumatized by knowing the reality of Santa Claus in the past and his colleague's constant bullying in the present, Harry, a 30-year-old adult who works at a toy factory decides to become a real Santa. He starts keeping an eye on kids and observes their behavior, recording whether they are being good or bad. On Christmas Eve, he takes his job as Kris Kringle seriously and is driven by a twisted form of justice, he embarks on delivering the gift of death to bad people and genuine gifts to good ones.
Christmas Evil diverts from the usual happy yuletide tale, instead offering a dark and twisted tale that is aligned with the psychological aspects of the troubled protagonist. Brandon Maggart empathetically demonstrates the nuanced range of his character Harry, whose mental deterioration and past trauma have given him a warped sense of morality in the present. It also provides a social commentary on how a festival's true essence is overshadowed when some people's commercialization, hypocrisy, and materialism get in between while also focusing on themes of mental struggles.
All Through The House (2015)
When a young girl named Jamie Garrett disappears from her home mysteriously, the Christmas-obsessed adults in town start considering the house spooky and making up haunted stories about her disappearance, which even makes the neighborhood kids fear at night. Fast forward to 15 years: Rachel, a 22-year-old girl, arrives in town for a Christmas break, when she learns about her neighborhood being plagued by terror again by an unstoppable Santa-masked killer and is shocked to discover the truth about him.
Filmmaker Todd Nunes has been appreciated for delivering a terror-filled Christmas-themed tale whose unpredictable twists will keep you at the edge of your seats. In the past, for his filmmaking skills, he has been graced with the best director and slasher movie award at the RIP Horror Film Festival, too. Ashley Mary Nunes does a commendable job in depicting Rachel who is a sweet and sympathetic girl who comes home for the holidays but is thrown into an epic web of secret connections, several mysteries, and serial killer madness. The movie also pays homage to the 80s slasher movies, creating intense tensions, displaying graphic deaths, and giving bloody vibes.
Silent Night (2012)
Silent Night is a remake of the highly controversial 1989 movie, Silent Night, Deadly Night, and serves as the sixth movie in the franchise. After a deputy sheriff Jordan is killed by a mysterious man dressed as Santa Claus, a new deputy officer Aubrey, a grieving widow, is sent to check up on him when he doesn't arrive at work and finds out his dead body. While the officers take care of the investigation concerning this murderous Santa, he roams free striking off names on his hit list. The question remains: will the officers be able to catch the culprit who is disguised as a symbol of joy on an auspicious occasion?
Silent Night follows the usual slasher movie formula but what makes it different is it's inspired by a real-life event. The tale is contemporary and an updated version of the 1989 movie, however, screenwriter Jayson Rothwell who didn't watch the original tale drew some ideas from the Covina massacre of 2008's Christmas Eve. The infamous event saw Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, dressed as Santa, crash his ex-wife's party, set fire to the house, and kill himself and several of his guests. This horrific scenario also is used in the movie, which makes it even darker, more traumatic, and more genuine. Overall, the remake stands on its own two feet as a fairly entertaining movie and pays homage to 1980s slashers. Special effects have certainly worked like magic in polishing the Santa maniac's innovative kills.