Release:1980
Written and Directed
by:Lewis
Jackson
Starring: Brandon Maggart
as Harry Stadling
Jeffrey DeMunn as
Philip Stadling
Dianne Hull as
Jackie Stadling
Andy Fenwick as
Dennis Stadling
I will start this review by revealing
that Christmas Evil is regarded by
many as
one of the best holiday horror attempts ever.John Waters says that this is "The BEST seasonal film of
all
time...True cinematic masterpiece."Leonard Maltin says (why do we care what he says?) it is a
"Gripping, well-made little thriller...with Maggart excellent as the
psychopathic Kris Kringle. A sleeper, with cult status possibilities..."
Bah, Humbug!It
stinks.
Here is a brief accounting of what
happens in Christmas Evil:First we see the dreams of
a little boy
(Harry, played by Brandon Maggart) envisioning Santa coming into his
house and
delivering joy and happiness under the family tree.Then we see reality, a man (Dad?) in a Santa
Suit getting busy with Mom.Oh,
the
anguish!
Later,
as an adult, Harry works in a toy factory and is very
strange indeed.He
puts shaving cream on
his face and makes “Santa faces” in the mirror each
morning, and dances around
to Christmas carols each evening when he gets home.He even spies on the neighborhood children
and writes down their naughty and nice behavior in big books that he
keeps in a
drawer.
After witnessing unacceptable
Christmas cynicism among his
co-workers he dons a Santa Suit and goes on a rampage.Then Christmas
Evil gets really weird…
Harry, dressed as Santa, does many
things this night,
including:
Breaking
into the toy factory and stealing a
truckload of toys,
Breaking
into a neighborhood kid’s house and
putting toys under the tree,
Dancing
with strangers having a Christmas party,
Getting
stuck in a chimney,
Being
chased by an angry mob with torches,
One
last hurrah in the surprise finish that will
leave you scratching your head,
Oh,
and in between he kills some people.
I
am all for mixing horror and
holidays.I
actually liked Silent Night, Deadly Night.I like lots of other off-beat flicks with interesting
villains and
original concepts.There
are some criteria
that must exist, however, if I am going to enjoy a bad horror movie:If it can’t be
scary and compelling then at
least be funny!I
don’t mean slap-stick
humor or goofiness, but funny for the sheer ridiculousness and inherent
badness
of the flick.While
watching Christmas Evil I
couldn’t even crack a
smile.
The gore is stupid and the villain is
creepy in Christmas Evil.Not “good
creepy” mind you, but creepy like
that guy in your office with dandruff that doesn’t seem to
bathe.
Oh,
one more thing.Christmas Evil sets up
Harry
as being “Santa obsessed” from the beginning.During the film he pulls out the sewing machine and an old
fur wrap and
makes a Santa Suit.If
he’s so obsessed
wouldn’t he have had a Santa Suit already?He’s an adult for crying out loud that has Santa
memorabilia all over
the house…surely he had a Santa Suit!No, not until now…and we watch him sew it.That’s just
dumb. Questions
or comments about Christmas Evil? Contact us!
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