10 Christmas Flicks For That Special Horror Fan (2016 Edition)

 Holiday Horror. It's more common now than it once was and it wasn't even that long ago that the genre faced a lot of controversy for combining the happiest time of the year with blood and guts. However, the Christmas horror sub-genre has become somewhat of a guilty pleasure for both die hard fans and newer generations and today, I'd like to make a little list of some of my 'alternate' Christmas movies to pop in every year.

 1). GREMLINS (1984)

Let's get the obvious choice out of the way here first, with the most commercially appealing film on this list. Joe Dante and Steven Spielberg created one of the best films of the 1980's with fun and likeable characters, a strong screenplay, and amazing special effects for the time. 'Gremlins II' is honestly my personal favorite of the two due to its wacky 'Looney Tunes' tone, but there's no denying the importance of the original that started it all and with talk of a new film coming one can only hope that they don't screw it up. (P.S. They probably will...)

2). A Christmas Horror Story (2015)

 A severely underrated gem when released just last year, 'Christmas Horror Story' has gone one to become one of my newest favs. This anthology film tells multiple short stories ending with an amazing battle between Krampus and Santa himself. The best part about this film, is that you can catch it on Netflix right now. What are you waiting for?

 3). KRAMPUS (2015)

A very divisive horror film, 'Krampus' is either thought of fondly or as a mass market overrated popcorn flick, and while it was flawed and does feel slightly toned down for a wider audience, I still love this film. There was nothing like this last year in theaters and after disappointment after disappointment last year in horror, 'Krampus' was a breath of fresh air from the director of the suburb 'Trick R' Treat', with dark humor and some surprising amount of heart and warmth in a film that feels and looks so so cold. Give Michael Dougherty every holiday themed horror flick from now on please.

4). Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)

 Here's one that will definitely divide folks. If you hate subtitles, as much as I am disappointed to hear that but this movie won't be for you. For the rest of you all, 'Rare Exports' is a bizarre Swedish film about Santa being discovered in an ancient ruin only for those who discovered him to realize too late how bad of an idea that really was. The concept of Santa as an ancient evil entity instead of his usual 'Coca-Cola' self is really nothing new, however this film does it so well and with a few twists and turns of its own along the way. The film is well paced, well acted, and well produced and shot and is well worth at least a rental if not adding to your collection. Don't let the subtitles scare you away, let the movie itself do that.

5.) Black Christmas (1974)

We will be reviewing this one in more detail down the line, but let's just talk a little about it here. Bob Clark would ironically go on to direct the beloved classic 'A Christmas Story' only a few short years after 'Black Christmas' and with both holiday themed films, he is at his very best. Taking the concept of the old urban legend of 'The Man in the Attic' mixed in with some creepy visuals and one of the scariest movie killers of all time. Christmas never terrified me more than with 'Black Christmas'.

6.) Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)

A huge controversy when first released, people were so angry about the idea of a mall Santa wielding an axe, you'd think the movie killed their puppies. The hype surrounding the film did unfortunately harm it somewhat in the end as I and many others felt slightly let down when I first watched it but even if it didn't quite live up to all the protests it spawned, it's still a solid slasher film that does what few of them did: developed its story and its main killer Billy. You strangely enough feel more for young Billy than many of his victims, due to his extensive backstory in which he is constantly abused by the evil Mother Superior. It's more akin to dramas than your typical slasher fare, but that is the charm and what elevates it above your usual genre flick.

7). Christmas Evil (1980)

The ending to this movie is worth it alone. A troubled man day dreams and spies on his neighbors, seeing who is naughty or nice. I can't say much more, as it would spoil the surprise, but trust me when I say this one is totally insane.

8). Don't Open Till Christmas (1984)

If sleaze is more your thing, this 'Grindhouse-esque' slasher is your thing. Brutally violent and visuals that always make you feel dirty and unclean, 'Don't Open' is for you more hardcore out there if you can manage to track down a copy (or use YouTube). I wanted to mention it however, as it seems that many do not and it's a pretty good slasher film.

9). Black X-Mas (2006)

We'll keep this short as you've likely already read our recent review. A guilty pleasure and a not-so-terrible remake, 'Black X-Mas' chooses to take the basic concept of the original and rather than copying it word for word, it takes it into classic 80's slasher territory which gives it at the very least a fun popcorn factor much like 2005's 'House of Wax'.

10). Silent Night (2012)

Another remake 'in name only', 'Silent Night' is very much like 'My Bloody Valentine 3D' in many ways and that's not a bad thing. It's surprisingly brutal for a film from 2012 (a 13 year old girl is murdered on screen) and it's cheesy performance from Malcolm McDowell helps keep the film memorable. It's not serious and it doesn't pretend to be 'Silent Night' is good old fashioned slasher fun.

HONORABLE MENTION:

'And All Through The House' (Tales From The Crypt Episode 2)

I'm sure most of you have seen this classic. A woman murders her husband on Christmas Eve only to be stalked outside her home by a crazed killer in a Santa suit. Unable to call the police due to her own crime, she must attempt to survive and protect herself and her daughter. This is simply in the top ten of the best episodes of the series and for anyone who's missed out on 'Tales From The Crypt' due to their age or whatever reason, you need to start here.


Have a Merry Christmas folks, hope to post something soon.