CHRISTMAS
EVIL (1980)
SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT (1974)
Directed by Lewis Jackson/Theodore
Gershuny
Diamond DVD
Reviewed 12.22.04
Review by Joseph A. Ziemba
THE FILMS
Gather 'round the mistletoe! It’s
Christmas time in the crypt o’
Bleeding Skull. And what’s
this I see? An incredibly cheap
(as in price, of course) holiday-horror
double feature, certain to inspire
the smell of pine and gingerbread
for the entire season. Sometimes,
I just can’t get over how
much I enjoy budget DVD releases.
Especially ones like this.
Before you start pointing fingers,
I know perfectly well that both
of these films are available via
various companies on DVD. Christmas
Evil even has its own special
edition from Troma, complete with
plentiful extras. But here’s
the thing. I can’t go around
buying EVERY disc I want, especially
for films that I know little about.
So when I’m presented with
an exquisite seasonal double feature
for much less than the price of
a “normal” DVD, I can’t
help it. The bill has been fit.
More about those other releases
later; we’ve got some snow
to shovel.
Why is Christmas Evil,
an unassuming, near perfect nail-biter,
so effectively frightening? Because
it could really happen, that’s
why. We begin on Christmas eve,
1947. Little Harry and his brother
have been visited by Santa (Dad).
One hop up the chimney later and
the boys are off to bed. Harry hears
noises. Strolling down to the living
room to investigate, Har gets the
scar of his life, as he peers in
on Santa and Mom...doing something
that adults do. All grown up, Harry
(Brandon Maggart) works a banal
job at the tacky “Jolly Dream”
Toy Factory. But that’s not
all he does. Completely obsessed
with Santa Claus, Harry sleeps in
Kris Kringle’s duds, covers
his apartment with holiday decorations,
constantly hums X-mas carols, and
spies on the neighborhood kids.
See, he keeps actual leather-bound
books of who’s been nice and
who’s been naughty, pushing
the creepy factor into the upper
cosmos as a result. As Christmas
time rolls around, Harry becomes
increasingly frustrated with the
hypocritical company he works for
and the mistreatment he’s
dealt with at the hands of his co-workers.
After losing a few more marbles,
Harry sews his own extravagant Saint
Nick suit, takes to the streets
on Christmas Eve, and dolls out
rewards to the good people. And
not so good people.
Christmas Evil is
not what you’d expect. Sure,
some horrific elements will peak
your blood tooth, but this isn’t
the typical trashy slasher junk.
Instead, we’ve got an excellently
acted snapshot (particularly Brandon
Maggart’s performance) of
a blemished man’s slow dive
into surreality. Enthralling from
the get-go, director Lewis Jackson
(to date, his sole directing credit)
offers up bushel-fulls of tight
photography and emotionally draining
interactions. Once Harry dons the
suit, his awkward schizo tendencies
come full force, as people aren’t
quite sure how to react themselves.
That leaves the viewer open for
loads of surprises; from an out-of-nowhere
gore sequence, to an uncomfortable
speech that Harry bellows to some
kids whilst in Santa mode. Despite
his destructive behavior, you can’t
help but feel sorry for the guy,
a direct result of the well executed
and solid build-up.
Then we have the reality aspect.
Who’s to say that something
like this couldn’t happen?
Therein lies Christmas Evil’s
strongest trait, as it never relies
on the expected “invincible”
killer humdrum. Harry’s existence
is coated with a genuine sense of
emptiness, from the dead-on depiction
of a dead-end job to his claustrophobic
freak-outs while driving. As the
unexpectedly brilliant ending whisked
away in my head, I quickly realized
that Christmas Evil was something special; unique, accomplished,
and very frightening. Wow.
If you’re expecting a letdown
after that mind blower, I don’t
blame you. Please, don’t be
so hasty! There’s another
stellar stocking stuffer that demands
your attention. It’s called
Silent Night, Bloody Night and it may very well be the very
first Christmas-themed horror film
ever produced. First time's a charm.
Here’s the scoop: the success
of Silent Night hinges
greatly on a couple of terrific
twists and happenings that you won't
see coming. I won’t ruin that
for you. On Christmas Eve in 1952
(seems to be a popular night for
evil mirth), Wilfred Butler, eccentric
mansion-owner, blasts from his front
door in a burst of flames. The coroner
files it as an accident. Present
day. An asylum patient escapes from
the cuckoo bin. Butler’s estate
was left to grandson Jeffrey, on
one condition: that the interior
of the house be kept exactly as
Wilfred left it. That’s where
Jeff’s hipster lawyer comes
in. The time has come to sell the
old homestead, so our Derek Flint-esque
attorney makes an offer to the tiny
town’s legislation (which
includes John Carradine in a small,
non-speaking role). They want to
buy the place and destroy it; it’s
haunted, of course! Next up is some
brutal murder, a killer that’ll
raise the shivers, and a masterful
use of sparse, dusty locations.
Silent Night is a
prime example of off-kilter, low
budget horror done right. Maybe
it was the dreary, always overcast
skies; perhaps it was the sudden
sepia-toned asylum flashback. Could
it have been the appropriately skewed
photography? Sure, some of the acting
was a little stale, lead actress
Mary Woronov in particular, but
that comes with the territory. Bottom
line: Silent Night thrilled
me for two reasons. One, it sets
out to be a dark creep-fest and
thoroughly succeeds, and two, it
was one of the first, paving the
way for countless slashers during
the next two decades. It's got that
special something in spades -- cold
scares and rough-edged charm. For
now, this picture patiently bides
its time until the rest of the world
catches on. Now you know.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
Both films are readily available
via various budget minded collections.
But where else are you going to
find such a cool-themed deuce? Aside
from an older, impossible-to-find
Catcom pairing, nowhere! Not having
seen Christmas Evil,
I’m happy to report that the
full frame transfer here isn’t
too shabby. It’s what you’d
typically expect from budget quality
(slightly rough print, compression
artifacts, some audio pops), but
remains entirely watchable. From
what I was able to dig up, the Troma
disc utilizes the exact same print.
The mono sound was fine, but a slight
buzzing was audible during moments
of silence.
Silent Night, Bloody Night has been around the block a few
times, seemingly popping up on at
least one compilation from every
major budget company. Although each
release I’ve been able to
compare (Platinum, Brentwood) offers
up the same gritty full frame print,
Diamond’s release trumps ‘em
in terms of clarity. While the shimmery
compression, thorough scratches,
and occasional video blips are present
throughout, the picture never breaks
up into chunky artifacts ala the
other releases. The mono sound was
louder and less muffled as well.
You know what? I’m not sure
I’d ever like to see a pristine
transfer for this film...the dirtiness
only adds to the creeps.
EXTRAS
Chapter stops, the most basic of
biographical notes, a listing of
theatrical taglines, and a brief
collections of screen shots (“Still
Gallery”).
FINAL THOUGHTS
Bask in the cream of the holiday
horror crop. In the race for greatest
seasonal shocks, Christmas
Evil and Silent Night,
Bloody Night run neck in
neck against Black Christmas for the golden ring. Both films
are mandatory holiday viewing for
people in our club. That means you. |
Workshop tinkering
The touch
He decorated
We knew ye well
Death bed
On with the party
|
