RED CHRISTMAS

Just so you aren't also caught by total surprise if you should watch this movie, it opens with a 3 minutes of anti abortion pro christian chat. maybe i should have started this with that Dee Wallace joke...

A widow and her bickering family gather at her remote estate on Christmas Eve. She must soon protect them all from a hideously deformed killer who's out for bloody revenge. How... unique. despite my snarkyness, this movie has a lot going for it. what could have easily been a cut and paste slasher turns out to be a wonderfully unique FUNNY GAMES style take on home invasion movies. all of the family members have great chemistry, and they are all given great little character moments that make the family dynamic feel real. and ounce the horror side of things start, almost every character changes as more of the truth comes out. the shifting power dynamics are fascinating to watch unfold, and the whole cast does a damn good job of making it all perfectly believable.

but the best part of this whole movie is how crazy unique the killer is. almost every horror movie wants you to be scared of the creepy crawly killer, but this movie doesn't tell you how to feel about him. the first time we see him is as a victim of some cranky old man, and his first visit to the house only further establishes him as a victim of circumstance. his kills are so over the top its almost whimsical, and the only reason the kills have any emotional impact is the way the characters respond to them.

and speaking of impacts, i'm a massive fan of the lighting and directing once things get spooky. the cat and mouse game in a big ass dark house has been done a million times, but the lighting mostly coming from Christmas lights gives the whole movie a lovely splash of color in every room. each separate area of the house has its own unique color pallet, and the Christmas music that pops up every once in a while becomes darkly hilarious considering the context.

i'm really surprised i haven't heard anyone talk about this movie before, and it easily takes the spot of AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS as my yearly holiday home invasion movie.

i'm still going to watch AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS though...

10/10

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