The Mean One

Jim Carrey's Grinch meets Terrifier's Art w/o a budget.... this movie on paper had so much potential and had a studio backed it financially, maybe it would have had a chance! Hardly any on-screen kills worthwhile and that's probably because the budget wasn't there for impressive special effects. No money also means no actors. And above all else, there's no licensing deal on the character or all that comes with it. It just feels like a High School film project. I love Art the Clown and the Terrifier movies are terrific gorefest slasher flicks. The Mean One falls flat on almost every level. The coolest thing is the design of The Grin... "The Mean One." Even that isn't original as it's a blatant ripoff of Jim Carrey's classic interpretation.

The Mean One (2022) is a movie that I caught in theatres this evening (Regal Theatres picked it up). The storyline focuses on a town where eleven years ago a gruesome murder occurred leaving an entire household dead and one survivor, Cindy. As Cindy is finally learning to live with the nightmares from that night, similar occurrences start happening again around the town. Has the killer returned?

This movie is directed by Steven LaMorte (Nightwatch series) and stars David Howard Thornton (The Terrifier 1 & 2), Krystle Martin (They Live in the Grey), Chase Mullins (Driven), Amy Schumacher (Nightwatch series), John Bigham (Angel's Dance) and Erik Baker (One Stop Away).

The narration is good, has some nice comedy and reminded me of Malcolm McDowell. The storyline isn't good and neither is the acting outside of David Howard Thornton. The Grinch was fun for the most part. The writing for The Grinch's backstory wasn't good but the mannerisms and facial expressions were solid. His movements were cool too. The kills were okay, there was some solid gore and a plethora of nail and neck kills. I will warn viewers there's some bad CGI fire and blood splatter. The ending is absolutely atrocious. I didn't like the ending at all...but it fit.

Overall, this is bad, but an absolute must watch for those who enjoy bad horror films. I would score this a 3.5-4/10 and strongly recommend it.

In Newville, on Christmas night, the mother of the girl Cindy is murdered trying to save her daughter from a trespasser. Nancy describes the man as a green monster dressed in costume of Santa Claus. Twenty years later, Cindy (Krystle Martin), who was hospitalized due to her mental illness, returns to Newville with her father during the Christmas holidays as part of her recovery from the childhood trauma. On arrival, they are stopped by Deputy Burke (Chase Mullins) since Christmas ornaments are not allowed in town. They arrive at their house that is closed and start to decorate the house for Christmas. But during the night, the green monster kills her father at home. Nobody believes Nancy again but out of the blue, the local Doc Zeus (John Bigham) tells her that the Grinch, a.k.a. The Mean One, killed his wife Martha twelve years ago, and nobody has also believed in his words and since then, he is chasing the Mean One in Christmas to kill it. Nancy visits Sheriff Hooper (Erik Baker) again, but he does not pay attention to her. Now Cindy decides to team up with Doc to kill the Mean One.

"The Mean One" (2022) is a movie about The Grinch by Steven LaMorte. The gory plot has a promising beginning, but the development is not good with stupid situations. The conclusion is awful, with Cindy feeling sorrow and forgiving the Monster Killer. It is difficult to understand the intention of the writers with this corny conclusion. The cast is also very weak. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "O Malvado - Horror no Natal" ("The Mean One - Horror in Christmas")

I went into this movie with high expectations. Knowing the Grinch was going to be played by the Terrifier and seeing the trailer had me thinking this movie would be hysterically bloody.

Ironically, it was nowhere near as gory as I anticipated, and that is not necessarily a bad thing. All of the Dr. Suess easter eggs were cute.

This film had a lot of potential to really be a wonderful com-horror parody, but I felt they dropped the ball by not letting the Grinch speak. Given that the Grinch has always spoken and drove the story, to have him non-verbal appeared to be a missed opportunity, especially given how violent he was supposed to be in this movie.

Second thing was the acting was lack-luster and the dialogue not particularly well-written. Obviously this film did not have the budget equivalent of a Marvel film, but the acting just left a lot to be desired. That said, the actor playing the deputy did a serviceable job and of course Mr. Thornton did an outstanding job as the Grinch considering he was limited to body language to convey the character.

All in all not terrible. I have seen better< but also seen much worse.

"The Mean One" is a lackluster parody of Dr. Seuss's "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" with a higher body count. Despite the presence of David Howard Thornton, known for his role as Art the Clown in "Terrifier 2," the movie fails to deliver on its central joke. The use of shaky camera scenes and dark lighting hides Thornton, and the movie's commitment to CGI blood splatters zaps the basic thrills of its scenes. The supporting characters are walking tropes, and the movie's emotional investment in Cindy You-know-Who is weak. Overall, the movie is a missed opportunity for a fun, bloody riff on a classic story.