I really thought I remembered this coming into theaters, but Wikipedia tells me this was released to only 11 theaters, and I highly doubt I'd remember that.
This about marks the last time Malcolm McDowell was in a big movie, and even if I did not see this in theaters, I knew this came out, and I do think I saw this. I think this was fairly recognized remake, at a time when a few classic horror movies were being remade. The cover with Santa holding a flame thrower was pretty instantly iconic, and I believe I saw this and then forgot it ever existed.
This is also coming at the end of the Saw type of splatter trend that was on a kick for a while, and horror was in a bad place (see my review of 2011's The Howling Reborn). The characters at this point wore their unlikeability on their sleeve, such as this unrepentant cunt of a teenage daughter that says "Fuck Christmas!" in this movie early on.
Along with the tone and Malcolm McDowell, this is clearly drafting a lot from the Rob Zombie Halloween movie. Everyone is a disgusting slimy freak, grainy color soaked extremity is everywhere, and the film shoves it all in your face telling you that you like it and you should ask for more. Look, again, a bad time for horror specifically.
I’m trying not to overstate this and I’m also not laying it all to blame on Silent Night. But I’m going to say if horror had kept going this way and not transitioned into elevated horror, I might be out on the genre entirely. It’s a game of one-up-manship, it’s excess for the sake of excess. It clearly would have been tired by now.
There’s still this type of thing out there, just not as in the spotlight. It’s not even a remake, so if someone from the original got a paycheck for this, good on them. This isn’t horrible compared to its ilk, it’s just an entire movement I never liked and has clearly aged poorly. I’ll give it about 2 stars.
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