Review of Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) by Phillip Y — 27 Dec 2013

This is one of those rare foreign films in which you read the subtitles even if you aren't the type to like such films. While it isn't perfect I could almost label it a flawed masterpiece for its tantalizing concept.

What if Santa was real but rather than rewarding good kids he punished bad children? And what if he had been entombed in ice for a long time and his "elves" were in the process of helping him get out so he could bring terror back to the world. And what if the only good boy in the area knew about this legend and tried to stop it all but the adults ignore him?

Tension is eased up gradually not slammed in your face like clumsy American films I won't name. Things happen at a subtle level and that is one of the great strengths of this picture. Another strength is the setting and Finnish culture (people wearing their underwear out the snow, Santa Claus with horns per their legend of him, etc).

What are some of the weaknesses? The finale could have been better. It was somewhat good at best. Also, the flip flop between suspense style horror and dark comedy sometimes worked and other times fizzled or just didn't register. See spoilers below if you already watched this picture.

There's a fair amount of non sexual male nudity in this one so American prudes should steer clear.

This movie was on a limited budget (and is therefore graded on such a curve) and was based on two movie shorts by a Finnish company.

Thanks to the Skype of Cthulhu lads who told me about this picture.

STORY/PLOTTING/EDITING: B plus to A minus; CHARACTERS/DIALOGUE: B plus;.

HORROR TENSION LEVEL: B plus to A minus; SOUND/MUSIC: B;.

CINEMATOGRAPHY: B to B plus; OVERALL GRADE: B plus; WHEN WATCHED: end of December 2012/13 (streamed) (watched twice).

SPOILERS: I would have been happier if the kid had died at the end sacrificing himself. It felt like a cheat when he got away but I get they didn't want to kill a child character in the film.

Santa should have been shown. Did they run out of money and figured they lacked the means to create something scary?

The first elf that they captured was a great tension scene. Notice a lot of Europeans aren't hung up on nudity as Americans.