Red Christmas

Director - Craig Anderson (Black Comedy, How to Not Behave)
Starring - Dee Wallace (Critters, The Howling), Geoff Morrell (Rogue, Coffin Rock), and David Collins (The Detectives of Noir Town, Howard the Sex Therapist)
Release Date - 2016
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "This Christmas, the only thing under the tree is terror"
Format - Bluray (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     Christmas movies are still rolling in!  I love Christmas.  I love the lights, the songs, the television specials, spending time with my family, watching my kids experience all these things that make me happy.  Christmas is really a joyous time of year for my family and I.  With that being said, horror is my life so when I come across a Christmas themed horror movie I have to check it out.  There has been some classics released over the years like Black Christmas, Silent Night Deadly Night, A Christmas Cadaver, Santa's Slay, Don't Open Till Christmas, and Christmas Evil.  Sometime back Artsploitation released the Australian shot holiday slasher Red Christmas starring screen legend Dee Wallace.  This film is not to be confused with the 2014 found footage horror film Red Christmas from director Steve Rudzinski.  I reached out to Artsploitation and they were kind enough to send a review copy my way.  Thanks guys!

     The film follows a dysfunctional family living in Australia who set down to enjoy Christmas the best they can.  The matriarch of the family is trying to carry on after losing her husband while her children bicker.  One of her daughters is a teenager and does not accept her family.  She has another daughter who is pregnant and days away from delivery and her third daughter is a religious fanatic that puts her faith before all else.  On top of all that she has a son with down syndrome that helps her around the house.  As they prepare for Christmas dinner and to open presents they are greeted with a visited cloaked in a black shroud.  They invite him inside and he tells them more about himself and refers to her as his mother before revealing he was her aborted baby from years ago.  When they kick him out of their home he goes on a bloody rampage to get to his mother.

     I didn't know what to expect from Red Christmas but several horror friends mentioned how awesome it was.  Most of you know by now that my taste in movies is very different than most horror fans and I refuse to change who I am so I can like lame ass movies to fit in.  With that being said, Red Christmas fucking slays.  It was not what I was expecting and it fucking delivered.  The acting in this one is top notch.  The entire cast gave the viewer characters with varying personalities.  Some you loved and others you loved to hate which is the way a movie should be.  Some were a little flat the others were very layered which made them stand out.  It was nice seeing Dee Wallace take the lead again.  Over the years her roles have become smaller and smaller being nothing more than a glorified cameo.  After all these years she still has it and really needs to take lead in more projects.  The story for this one reminds me a lot of Chris Moore's Blessed the Children about mother choosing to terminate her pregnancy and it then stalked in her home.  The major difference is this child survived and thrived with murderous intent.  I loved the slasher flow the film has and the unexpected kill scenes that take advantage of the viewer focusing on the story and the "what will happen next" aspect of it.  The film was cleverly written and the execution is damn near perfect.  Finally, the film has several bloody on screen kills that not only use imagination but deliver some amazing practical effects.  I wouldn't call this film a splatter flick but there is lots of splatter.  Overall, Red Christmas is a must for your holiday season.  The film will join the ranks of Silent Night Deadly Night and Black Christmas.  If you have yet to check it out you are truly missing out on a new holiday classic.