Top 5: Christmas Horror Films
Let’s face it, COVID ruined the year and all its festivities, so why bother getting into the Christmas spirit?! Instead, we think we ought to just embrace the circumstances and take this opportunity to thoroughly paint the Yuletide black…
This year, we’re bringing the horror to the holidays by taking a look at a few of our favorite Christmas horror films!
5: Krampus (2015)
Michael Dougherty brings the popular German folklore legend about a half-goat, half-demon monster that punishes misbehaving children at Christmastime to life with his 2015 film, Krampus. Featuring a terrific cast, superb sound design, excellent creature design, and predominantly practical effects, there’s a lot to love about Krampus. Dougherty conjures up a throwback 80s horror vibe (in the vein of Gremlins) by blending humor with horror, providing enough twists and turns to keep the film afloat — and you hanging from the edge of your seats. While the film may be too much for some, it’s the perfect black-hearted holiday treat for those weirdo cinemagoers (like us) who actively seek non-traditional holiday fun.
4: Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
Okay, so this is a bit of a controversial pick, but did you really expect a film blog called “Viddy Well” to not try to shoehorn a Kubrick film into its list?! While Eyes Wide Shut isn’t typical horror fare, you have to admit that it’s thoroughly creepy and deeply unsettling. What starts as a pretty normal film about a married couple slowly unravels more and more into a disturbing nightmare full of sex, paranoia, and secret societies. The film’s aesthetic is full of Christmas lights and decor that give the film a hazy, dreamlike sheen that plays right into its nightmarish feel. While there’s no monsters or murders, no blood and gore, we still consider Eyes Wide Shut to be a horror film, a different, more personal horror film, which was enough for us to put it on this list.
3: Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)
Making a horror film that satisfies adults while also being (mostly) safe for kids is a tough task, but this Finnish gem finds the perfect balance with its blend of horror and fantasy elements. Despite the film’s R rating (which is due to language and a naked Santa), we’d say this one is definitely OK for older children, but also don’t trust us with your kids. The film is a cleverly designed parody and adorned with the icy atmospherics of John Carpenter’s The Thing. It’s carefully constructed film that maintains its straight face while it balloons more and more into delightful absurdity. Roger Ebert described it best with the opening line of his 2010 review: “Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale is a rather brilliant lump of coal for your stocking hung by the fireside with care.”
2: Gremlins (1984)
Gremlins is an offbeat Christmas classic that famously contrasts the cheery lightness of the holiday season with devilish monsters and family-friendly horror. Written by Home Alone director Chris Columbus, directed by Joe Dante, and produced by Steven Spielberg, Gremlins had an astounding amount of big name talent backing the project and filling it full of creativity and charm. We absolutely love how a cute little creature like the mogwai can mutate into grotesque demonic creatures is a fun concept, and it’s even more enjoyable pressed up against a holiday backdrop. Its creature effects are iconic, and their practical nature has held the film up after all these years.
Before we name our favorite Xmas horror film, here’s a few honorable mentions:
Jack Frost (1998)
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Anna And The Apocalypse (2017)
Christmas Evil (1980)
Without further delay, our favorite Christmas horror movie is…
1: Black Christmas (1974)
Bob Clark’s 1974 slasher is a seminal horror film and the greatest Christmas horror film of all time, for our money (good enough to spawn several remakes which, frankly, aren’t worth the time). Black Christmas is the real deal, and it succeeds in getting under your skin. The contrast between a deranged killer stalking sorority girls and its cheery holiday setting strengthen its unsettling quality, but it’s the frequent obscene phone calls that appear throughout the film and mysterious killer that truly make it scary. But it’s not all chills and thrills; the film may be punctuated by grisly murder, but it’s accented with superb moments of levity (like Marian Waldman’s Mrs. Mac) and bolstered by a compelling central story about our pregnant protagonist deciding if she should keep the baby. It deals with heavier themes with relative grace, but it doesn’t take itself too seriously, either. It revels in the irony that juices out of every pore, from it’s tongue-in-cheek title (which refers to the holiday favorite White Christmas) to its twisted perversion of the holidays. Its twists and turns have been trampled on by just about every horror film that’s followed, so you have to keep that in mind when watching it, but even then, Black Christmas is still largely effective. To us, it’s aged like a fine wine, and it’s one we like to frequently indulge ourselves with.
Hungry for more?! Check out the links below:
Five Fun Facts About Gremlins
Five Fun Facts About Black Christmas
Top 10: Christmas Films
Gremlins Drinking Game
What do you think? We want to know. Share your thoughts and feelings in the comments section below, and as always, remember to viddy well!