Ed's Review Dot Com

Legendary Pictures, Universal Pictures,

Adam Scott, Toni Collette, David Koechner, Allison Tolman, Conchata Ferrell, Emjay Anthony, Stefania Owen, Krista Stadler

Poor Max (Emjay Anthony) is having the worst Christmas ever. He’s doing his best to keep believing in Santa and has written his letter. But a whole bunch of annoying relatives are showing up to celebrate with them, and the two mean sisters steal his letter and reads it out loud to the whole table. Max has had it and in a fit of rage, he tears the letter up and throws it out the window. Instantly the weather changes as the worst storm in history settles in knocking out power, telephone, and radio/tv. Little did they realize that Max’s lack of Christmas spirit has brought them Krampus, the dark side of St. Nicholas and the Christmas devil to terrorize and take away the family members one by one. This Christmas horror film is based on the German Christmas legend.

This is a very unusual film. Filled with lots of old legends sparked by Krista Stadler who plays the aged Grandmother who knows the stories of Krampus and sets the family straight on the danger. This is a PG-13 horror film, so though it’s really “make you jump” scary, and the monsters (Krampus and his minions) are rather horrific, there’s nothing completely out of the ordinary. David Koechner has the “Cousin Eddie” role that Randy Quaid played so well in Christmas Vacation, and certainly Conchata Ferrell (Charlie Sheen and Ashton Kutcher’s housemaid in 2 1/2 Men) has an excellent role as the grumpy alcoholic Aunt who is not far from her 2 1/2 Men character. She adds a great deal to the mix. Certainly though, the cast was really well put together and they all played off each other very well. There is a great deal of humor in this movie as well, so it doesn’t take itself too seriously. After all, it is a ludicrous situation. There are a couple things you will not want to miss, should you head for the theater for this out of the ordinary Christmas thriller. First, be sure to arrive on time, as the opening sequence is a rendition of “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” with a slow motion montage of what looking like Christmas really means in America! It’s a very well done piece. Also, the very end gives us a surprise view of what really happened to the family members who have been killed off one by one throughout the film. All in all it was a very enjoyable film, great music and sound effects, spectacular special effects, and winter scene that truly looks colder than when Lara and Dr. Zhivago stayed in the country for the winter! This was an enjoyable film and if you’re a horror lover, like I am, go spend the 10 bucks to see it.

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