Ajouter une intrigue dans votre langueHolly returns to her hometown to make a Christmas special before her promotion to a television anchorwoman, but first she must face Satan Claus and horrible childhood memories of him.Holly returns to her hometown to make a Christmas special before her promotion to a television anchorwoman, but first she must face Satan Claus and horrible childhood memories of him.Holly returns to her hometown to make a Christmas special before her promotion to a television anchorwoman, but first she must face Satan Claus and horrible childhood memories of him.
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Title of review pretty much says it all. This is a witty, well written and surprisingly well acted (for a SCI-FY channel movie), spoof of those sappy Christmas movies where the cynical big city gal returns to her rural home-town and finds both her Christmas spirit and true love. But now add a bonkers over-the-top Christmas town, Satan Clause, and a half-dozen grisly Christmas-themed murders and you have a recipe for fun.
I live in a famously over-the-top Christmas town so I really identified with the Ho Ho Hoedown and all the other non-stop holiday events in the movie. And the Hallmark spoof was right on--every man the heroine meets is a ruggedly handsome widower with a daughter, and they even find a way to throw in a prince. I also got a kick out of how there was exactly one African-America family and exactly one Jewish family in town--and that people try to 'vandalize' the Jewish family's house by putting Christmas lights on it. Perhaps a little longer than it needed to be, but a fun way to kill an afternoon.
I live in a famously over-the-top Christmas town so I really identified with the Ho Ho Hoedown and all the other non-stop holiday events in the movie. And the Hallmark spoof was right on--every man the heroine meets is a ruggedly handsome widower with a daughter, and they even find a way to throw in a prince. I also got a kick out of how there was exactly one African-America family and exactly one Jewish family in town--and that people try to 'vandalize' the Jewish family's house by putting Christmas lights on it. Perhaps a little longer than it needed to be, but a fun way to kill an afternoon.
As other reviewers have pointed out, this is a horror spoof of the (Hallmark, Lifetime, UPtv, ION Television, and others) Christmas (romance) genre. It also draws heavily from the Krampus folklore (and the dozen or so Krampus-based movies), a horned animal-like figure that scares children who have misbehaved at Christmas (the opposite of Saint Nicholas). At the center of the movie is Holly Frost (played by Karen Knox), a well-known TV news reporter who has a very cynical view of life, especially of Christmas. She returns to her hometown, after many years, where she falls in love while facing off Satan, who she accidentally wrote to as a child by misspelling her letter to Santa. Going into this one, I had low expectations, as the spoof genre, in general, doesn't produce many good films, unless you are a teenage boy, which seems to be the demographic this genre of film appeals to. This movie is no different. As a comedy, I thought it wasn't very good, as I did not laugh once during the movie, not even a chuckle. The closes I came to laughing was during the angel cookie scene, which I did enjoy watching. It is a pity they did not develop it a bit more (I also liked the Snowman's eyes). There was some potential in this movie around the horror angle. That said, the acting, though silly (as another reviewer put it), was pretty good, overall. I thought Knox had a very strong performance. She had a 'Bad Santa' vibe to her portrayal of Holly, which worked well on screen, I thought. The supporting cast too had a solid performance. It was a bit ironic having Michael Xavier (as Sheriff Noel) in the movie, as he has starred in two Christmas movies this season: Hallmark's Christmas Comes Twice and Lifetime's Christmas on Wheels. They should have used this in the film, as it is a spoof of these types of movies, of course. However, given viewer demographics (verses, e.g., those of Hallmark movies), I suspect not many people watching this movie would have picked up on it (as they would not have seen the above-mentioned movies). Although there is some good acting (and the critique behind the satire makes sense), all in all, this parody is not very funny (silly yes, but funny no).
I gave it a 3/10 for the first 17 minutes, but really though, it somehow redeems itself around the 20minute mark.
Then it's so cheesy, kinda cheesy good. I even giggled a little. It's a fun silly little watch. A perfect distraction from 2020.
Then it's so cheesy, kinda cheesy good. I even giggled a little. It's a fun silly little watch. A perfect distraction from 2020.
I can't believe I just sat thru 90 minutes of this movie. 90 minutes of my life I will never get back. Why does SyFy bother with Christmas movies like this. Toys of Terror was a Christmas horror for children. And this one, as another reviewer here pointed out, is a spoof for teenagers. Was it supposed to be funny? Clearly comedy is not syfy's strongest genre. Why can't they stick to what they do best? Now, if they produced, for example, 'A Dark Matter Christmas' or 'Christmas with the Killjoys', or maybe even 'A Z Nation Christmas', I am sure they would get it right, plus most of us fans of the network would be keen to watch! It doesn't matter how good the acting is; it doesn't matter if the lead had a 'Bad Santa' or a 'Bad Moms' performance, if the movie is bad, it is not worth watching.
Once you seen a movie in this genre you will realise they all suck in terms of quality as well as direction. I have seen worst quality movies of this low level so take my feedback as well as my scoring as acceptable for the movie in question.
Just wanted to add that I have never seen so many unattractive women iin one movie so lost more points just on that factor.
Overall if you fancy a Xmas horror movie based on what has come before as well as after then this movie might be for you.
Gather Covid couldn't stop this movie from going forward so it was meant to be in terms of general release.
5/10.
Just wanted to add that I have never seen so many unattractive women iin one movie so lost more points just on that factor.
Overall if you fancy a Xmas horror movie based on what has come before as well as after then this movie might be for you.
Gather Covid couldn't stop this movie from going forward so it was meant to be in terms of general release.
5/10.
Le saviez-vous
- AnecdotesFilmed during the height of the pandemic in early 2020.
- ConnexionsReferences La Reine des neiges (2013)
- Bandes originalesSaucy Santa Claus
Lyrics by Armenia Sarkissian and Spencer Creaghan
Music by Spencer Creaghan
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