During the Christmas season of 2015, a certain Yule-themed horror movie called Krampus turned in a surprising box office performance. Through critics were split, Krampus earned approximately $61 million against a relatively small $15 million budget. About two months before Krampus released, another Christmas horror movie, also featuring the anti-Santa Claus released. But the Canadian anthology horror movie, A Christmas Horror Story saw just a brief theatrical release before gifting VOD platforms. Yet critics seemed more impressed with this smaller effort and it has slowly carved out a niche for itself.
Synopsis
Bailey Downs DJ ‘Dangerous’ Dan narrates four stories of Christmas horror while keeping listeners updated on a shopping mall disturbance.
A Christmas Horror Story Is Much Better Than Its Promotional Materials Suggest
Right now you can find and watch A Christmas Horror Story for free on Tubi. The Canadian anthology horror movie doesn’t so much have a reputation as it’s often forgotten. I’d suggest a big reason for general horror fans discounting this one is the promotional material. Take one look the poster for the movie and what immediately comes to mind is the kind of cheap, knock-off horror B-movie that pop up on VOD platforms regularly. And that’s too bad because this a well-produced, often clever, horror movie that never looks cheap. Certainly, this isn’t a knock-off of Krampus – it shares more in common with another holiday-themed horror anthology, Trick ‘r Treat.
…you won’t find any lumps of coal in this horror stocking.
Like just about every anthology movie, directors Grant Harvey, Steven Hoban, and Brett Sullivan can’t deliver uniform quality over all segments. Nevertheless, you won’t find any lumps of coal in this horror stocking. There’s a clever wraparound segment – starring William Shatner himself – that never actually feels like a wraparound story. Shatner’s role is thankfully minimal, he’s funny with what he does, and the wraparound connects the stories in a very natural way. Though it takes a bit to understand how the stories coalesce, little narrative crumbs pop up here and there.
A Christmas Horror Story Works Most of the Time, Even If It Runs a Little Too Long
Not surprisingly, a couple of segments stand out more than others. Veteran Canadian character actor George Buza playing a Santa Claus who discovers his elves have turned into zombies is loads of laugh-out loud splatter. In particular, Shiny Elf is an immediate highlight of the story and entire movie. A final surprise sticks its landing and lends A Christmas Horror Story an appropriately dark and humorous ending. Most of the best scares come courtesy of a story that sees the search for real Christmas tree end with parents unknowingly bringing home a changeling in place of their son. Some of the movie’s best horror visuals turn up in this segment.
Veteran Canadian character actor George Buza playing a Santa Claus who discovers his elves have turned into zombies is loads of laugh-out loud splatter.
Though its pacing feels sluggish occasionally, a third story following students investigating a year-old murder in their school basement eventually clicks. In fact, A Christmas Horror Story delivers its best jump scares in this story. In addition, the story’s conclusion feels a more weighty relative to the other segments, offering a nice balance to some of the movie’s dark humor. If there’s a weak link, it’s the story following a greedy family visiting a wealthy aunt hoping for handouts. As compared to the other stories, this one lacks zip, scares, and feels perfunctory. Credit goes to some great Krampus make-up effects. But with A Christmas Horror Story feeling a bit too long, this story could have been cut.
A Christmas Horror Story Exceeds Expectations, Delivers a Christmas Horror Miracle
Whomever designed the promotional posters for A Christmas Horror Story should have been fired. Aside from bad movie lovers, a lot of people probably avoided watching this one on account of it looking … cheesy awful. But this festive horror anthology movie doesn’t just exceed expectations. No, it’s actually a good horror movie not far off in terms of quality from cult classic, Trick ‘r Treat. While ‘The Changeling’ and ‘Undead Elves’ segments are superior bits, and the ‘Krampus’ story falls a bit short, that’s typical for any anthology movie. Expect a remarkable amount of consistency alongside a handful of good jumps and stronger-than-expected production values. In fact, A Christmas Horror Story is something of a surprise gift hidden at the back of your Christmas tree.