Krampus (2015)

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This title comes from a great niche director by the name of Michael Dougherty, who also did the instant Halloween classic 'Trick r' Treat'. The beauty of this man is that he's not afraid to give us the strange and twisted without holding anything back. He just goes for it while taking pure pleasure in creating these surreal creatures that provide some pretty fantastic nightmare fuel. Perhaps the prime example is the now widely regarded Sam from 'Trick r' Treat' who has taken his seat at the table of recognizable horror villains.

While 'Krampus' isn't quite the calibre of 'Trick 'r Treat,' it's very much done in the same spirit. It's a dark and creepy ride the whole way through, and all of those comfy, cozy things we love so much about Christmas end up taking a turn and get pretty bloody horrific with this movie, catching us a touch more off guard than a Halloween-themed movie would because hey, it's Christmas! The way 'Trick 'r Treat' compares to 'Halloween' nowadays can also be seen here, comparing 'Krampus' to 'Black Christmas'. In other words, it's probably the best horror movie for the respective holiday since 1970-something.

The story centers on a young boy named Max (Emjay Anthony). A sweet boy with his imagination still hanging onto Christmas magic, he's actively getting into the holiday spirit and getting his letter for Santa ready. A part of him, however, "knows better" about the truth behind Santa. In contrast, another part listens to his Omi (Krista Stadler), considering Santa to have a bit of a deeper meaning than something physical in a red suit. I was taught the same way upon discovering the truth. The idea is that Santa is totally real, for he is the symbol that represents the magic and warmth of the Christmas spirit.

Everything gets ruined for Max when his family comes by for the holidays, sporting their very redneck, ignorant attitudes, which ultimately sets him off to go upstairs, tear up his letter to Santa, and essentially lose faith in the whole Christmas deal. However, in doing this, he accidentally seems to summon the anti-Santa, Krampus - a being sent to punish those who have been bad. This is how some cultures look at Christmas instead of our much more tame tradition of "coal in the stocking" (which I'm not even certain is a thing anymore). And while the idea of an anti-Santa is fun to those of us a bit more morbid about things, I would still prefer the coal idea after seeing what this thing can do.

The movie ends up being more or less a "bottle movie," borrowing a lot of inspiration from movies like 'Night of the Living Dead,' and I'd even say, to some extent, oddly enough, 'Christmas Vacation' based on a lot of the comedic dysfunction of the family. It also features Adam Scott and Toni Collette as Max's parents, David Koechner and Allison Tolman as his aunt and uncle, and topped with Conchatta Ferrell as miserable Aunt Dorothy. So, all in all, it's actually an interesting combination of B-C-listed talent, and I wouldn't have it any other way. For some reason, I feel like an A-lister would feel out of place here.

Actors aside, however, they're far from the best thing about this flick. The practical creature effects are What really sell you on this as a horror movie. There IS a fairly sad-looking army of killer gingerbread men done in CG. Still, once you see what's lurking elsewhere in the house, you're provided with some genuinely creepy and imaginative creatures straight out of one's nightmares. It's no secret that I also give horror movies much more credit when they ensure the audience that no one in the cast is safe. I will not spoil anything here, but the final outcome of this movie is really cool and leaves the viewer feeling very disturbed.

This is not something I'd consider a traditional "Christmas movie," but if you want the darker side of the holidays, it functions very well as a spookhouse film. Much like 'Trick 'r Treat,' it was made as not much more than a creepy, fun ride that highlights a specific holiday. Some of the imagery might be rough for some people, and it's not a movie you're gonna wanna sit and watch on "Family Movie Night." But it's a lot of fun as long as you can treat it as the spookhouse film it's meant to be and have an open mind about it. One could almost think of it as a long, Christmas-themed episode of 'Tales from the Crypt.'

4/5 

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