This year’s crop of seasonal movie offerings are looking very different. Usually there’s a wave of films stuffed to bursting with cheery Christmas greetings with maybe one counterview. The status quo has been rocked this year as the alternate festive films have come into force. The Leech, Violent Night, and The Mean One are three doing the rounds, but a quartet of Christmas carnage is better and so audiences also have Christmas Bloody Christmas to enjoy.
It’s Christmas Eve and fiery record store owner Tori Tooms (Riley Dandy) just wants to get drunk and party. Then the robotic Santa Claus (Abraham Benrubi) at a nearby toy store goes haywire and makes her night more than a little complicated. Santa Claus begins a rampant killing spree through the neon drenched snowscape against a backdrop of drugs, sex, metal, and violence, ultimately forcing Tori into a blood splattered battle for survival against the ruthless heavy metal Saint Nick himself.
Shot on 16mm, Christmas Bloody Christmas is the love-child of Silent Night, Deadly Night and The Terminator, set to an aggressively metal soundtrack. Written and directed by Joe Begos, Christmas Bloody Christmas has all the trademarks of the filmmaker. From neon-drenched visuals, to the pulsating score and the usual suspects on the cast list, this is a must-watch for fans of Begos’ other movies. A true anti-Christmas film, Christmas Bloody Christmas is crammed full of extreme violence and inventive deaths, and is perfect for that Christmas watch party with friends.
Christmas Bloody Christmas is Begos’ love letter to Christmas slashers and his rebellious spirit is perfectly suited to quashing the sentiment from the season. His fifth feature, with Christmas Bloody Christmas, Begos asserts himself as a visual maestro. If you liked the look of his 2019 Bliss, then Christmas Bloody Christmas is going to blow your mind. Christmas Bloody Christmas arrives in the UK on Shudder this Friday, the 9th December. Ahead of the launch we chatted with Begos. In the expected metal way of life, Begos was conducting the interview in the middle of his night. Our talk covered the popularity of Christmas horrors, an affinity for neon, and the overlooked merits of horror sequel, Pet Sematary 2.
Christmas Bloody Christmas arrives in select US cinemas and on Shudder on 9th December.
