Happy Horror-Days Review - Christmas Evil

On Christmas Eve, 1947, siblings Harry and Phil sit watching between the stair bannisters as Santa comes down the chimney. All jolly, Santa tucks into the cookies and milk and lays out the boys' presents before giving Harry and Phil, alongside their mother, a knowing wink. Later that night, Harry creeps downstairs, only to discover Santa and his mother in a very compromising position.

'Christmas Evil', also known as 'You Better Watch Out' or 'Terror in Toyland', sees an adult Harry (Brandon Maggart) now thirty-three years on from that scarring night, where he works in a toy factory. Although he is often bullied and belittled by his co-workers, seemingly living a completely solitary existence, he has never lost that Christmas spirit. Far from it, as Harry is on a mission to become the next Santa, one that strives for purity, with the goal of eradicating those on his own maniacal 'naughty list'. 

Slasher films have ushered in a reputation for being drenched in gory mayhem and bodily mutiny, topped with a generous peppering of boisterous sex and violence. Whilst many horror fans revel in this riotous fun, unfortunately, on a critical level, it is these displays of debauchery that have negatively construed slasher films as being throw-away, popcorn movies. Yes, there are many slasher films that deliberately feed into this lore, and brilliantly so. However, slasher films such as Christmas Evil evidence that this gnarly, niche subgenre of cinema can also be incredibly complex when viewed under a filmic microscope. 

Christmas Evil is dashed with a unique combination of psychological torment and dark comedy, particularly at the hands of Harry and how his childhood memory of Santa and his mother has festered into deep-rooted trauma. When Harry begins enacting his plan of becoming Santa, he not only dons the red and white suit, hat and heavy boots, but he mentally undergoes a transition, where he pushes the whole archetypal 'naughty and nice list' to barbaric and over the top, maddening limits. Once Harry's sanity tips over the edge and he unleashes all his past emotional upheaval, he embodies someone completely different from his usual meek self. Harry, as the moral avenging Santa Claus, sees no qualms in mutilating the naughty citizens, jamming nutcrackers into eyes and slamming axes into flesh. The yuletide setting, backdrop and reasoning for Harry's breakdown is what makes Christmas Evil so entrenched in surrealism. 

The film may wash itself with layered commentary, enticing a deeper glance, but for those who want to simply sit back and watch 90 minutes of eerie, disturbed and bloodied chaos, then Christmas Evil is one to add to the list. Watching Harry unravel is akin to that of Jack Torrance's collapse in 'The Shining' (1980), where the ruination of the lead is what makes scenes of exciting havoc even more riveting. In fact, the film's intensity is what led to its position on section three of the Director of Public Prosecutions list of obscene films/aka the video nasties. It's belonging to one of horror history's most stringent censorship battles saw the film not be released uncut in the UK until 2012. It has, however, since made up for lost time, with Christmas Evil becoming a beloved cult classic that has been championed by both critics and viewers alike. 

Although director and writer Lewis Jackson has not created any media since Christmas Evil's debut, he has attended the occasional panel and interview, where he has honestly declared that the film was not an overnight success. Many viewers did not understand the film, either it was too funny, akin to a parody comedy, or others thought it was shlock for the sake of being shlock. It was not until cinematic legend John Waters called Christmas Evil the greatest Christmas film of all time, one that was truly his own personal favourite, that he continually defended. Waters affirmed Jackson's exact goal when creating Christmas Evil: it is a black comedy that is twisted and disconcerting, but ultimately, it is an alluring enigma that will leave you wanting a rewatch straight away. 

Click here for the latest reviews, news and genre content!

Catch Christmas Evil at Dead Northern's Happy Horror-Days pop-up event on the 22nd of December at 18:30 pm