Review of Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984) by Thomas D — 13 Dec 2010

'25 DAYS OF HELLIDAY HORROR'.

#12: Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984).

Lets bring it back to the early 80s with a masterpiece.

Of "Santa Slashers", 'Silent Night, Deadly Night'! The story is just very memorable for some reason. It's about a young boy Billy who sees his parents killed by a psychopath in a Santa costume on Christmas Eve. He grows up in a strict orphanage where he is tormented by the head nun Mother superior. Once he is old enough, he begins working at a toy store. One day he is asked to where a Santa Clause suit to be the local Santa. He does so willingly, but his repressed memories resurface sending Billy on a bloodsoaked killing-spree.

Overall: The movie has a satisfactory amount of gore and creative kills. Although very campy, there is a stern sense of realism. It is a simple portrayal of somebody snapping from repressed memories. It is very real to an extent. The killer, Billy was casted perfect and was surprisingly an interesting character to watch as his psychological dementia unfolds. It really has that dark feel to it and it seems to be one of the more satisfying and definitive versions of the "Killer Santa" formula. A decent story and actors, along with an impressively high body count makes 'Silent Night' one of the better watches for 'Helliday Horror'. To think, it was shunned by Siskel & Ebert back in the day! Come on guys! Where's the Christmas spirit? Giminey Crickets! Or Giminey Christmas!! Or whatever. What a buncha Ebenezer's! "Naughty...Punish..." seriously.