All Rise...

Judge Patrick Naugle has a mingus in his dingus.

The Charge

You better watch out.

The Case

As a rule I generally detest any horror movie that's set around Christmas. Call it Catholic guilt (even though I'm not Catholic), but movies like Black Christmas and Silent Night, Deadly Night—and its endless parade of sequels—seem to skirt the limits of decency and have left a bad taste in my mouth. To my recollection, the only horror-themed holiday movie I can stomach is Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, which is more about celebrations than any one singular holiday.

When I saw that Krampus was arriving in theaters last Christmas, I rolled my eyes, even though the film was going to focus on a demonic Santa Claus (and not religious themes). To my surprise, I discovered the Krampus was based on an actual legend. Cribbing from Wikipedia: "In Austro-Bavarian Alpine folklore, Krampus is a horned, anthropomorphic figured described as ‘half-goat, half-demon' who, during the Christmas season, punishes children who have misbehaved, in contrast to Saint Nicholas, who rewards the well-behaved with gifts". In other words, Krampus has some basis in ancient folklore. Still, I went into Universal's Krampus with much hesitation and a Christmas horror movie sized chip on my shoulder.

To my surprise, writer/director Michael Dougherty's horror-comedy is actually a well constructed tale that somehow manages to avoid being offensive while still retaining the horror elements needed to make is truly frightening. It certainly helps that Dougherty has a great cast at his disposal; Toni Collette, Adam Scott, and David Koechner give the proceedings both an air of gallows humor, making Krampus the best Christmas themed horror movie in history (truth in advertising: the competition wasn't very stiff or bountiful). The story focuses on a family—headed by Tom (Adam Scott, Piranha), his wife Sarah Engel (Toni Collette, The Sixth Sense), and their children Beth and Max (Stefania LaVie Owen and Emhay Anthony)—and how tensions with relatives boils over into the arrival of Krampus, the demonic anti-Santa who punishes those who don't make the "nice" list. Certainly Tom and Sarah's family don't make the cut: along for the holiday is Sarah's sister Linda (Allison Tolman, The Gift), her obnoxious husband (David Koechner, Piranha 3DD), their children, aunt Dorothy (Conchata Ferrell, Two and a Half Men), Tom's elderly mother "Omi" (Krista Stadler). As they find themselves stuck in a winter wonderland of evil without hope of escape, it appears everyone's holiday is in jeopardy of having a very scary Christmas indeed.

I had such a good time with Krampus I'm slightly embarrassed by how much I enjoyed it. While it won't be to everyone's tastes, the film revels in equal parts comedy and horror, never coming down too hard on either side (except near the end, when things start to get dire for the Engel family). The actors fine just the right pitch for this material. Adam Scott and Toni Collette are dryly amusing as the put-upon Engels while David Koechner ratchets up his obnoxious quotient as the uncle from hell (he's the kid of guy who will have eight beers before Christmas Eve is even half over). Their interactions are often comical and may even hit too close to home for some viewers.

And then Krampus arrives.

Dougherty (who previously directed the Halloween themed Trick 'r Treat) and his special effects team make the evil Krampus a truly terrifying and malevolent force to be reckoned with. While Krampus may be half comedy, the filmmakers never gleam their laughs at the expense of Krampus; every time this monster arrives on screen you can feel the air being sucked out of the room. Krampus leaps from rooftop to rooftop, creating a terrifying atmosphere in the darkened, snowy landscape. The character himself is a marvel of production design; dirty, towering, and with eyes that sink deep into his skull and a gaping maw of a mouth. In any other movie a character like Krampus would be scary. Here, he's a downright nightmare.

As Krampus rushes headlong towards its conclusion the film revs up the CGI a bit too much, though some of it (which I won't spoil here) is amusing and unexpected. If I have any complaints, it's that the ending felt like a bit of a cheat; it concludes in a way that feels a too easy, though considering the material and setting I suspect the filmmakers didn't think they had any other options. Minor quibbles aside, this is a spine-tingling and gut-busting success. I never thought that I'd actually like a movie about a demonic Santa Claus, but Krampus changed my mind and proves that, with the right angle, almost any material can become palatable. Highly recommended.

Krampus (Blu-ray) is presented in 2.40:1 widescreen in 1080p high definition. Universal's work on this transfer is generally excellent—the film itself is bathed in blues and shadows, and while it's not often overly colorful, the image is clear of any defects or imperfections. Fans will be happy with how solid this transfer looks. The soundtrack is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround in English. This is a very aggressive, rollicking soundtrack that features a lot of surround sounds and directional effects. Also included are DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround in French and Spanish, as well as English SDH, French, and Spanish subtitles.

Extra features include an audio commentary with director/co-writer Michael Dougherty and co-writers Todd Casey and Zach Shields, an alternate ending, some deleted and extended scenes, a gag reel, a five-part featurette ("Dougherty's Vision", "The Naughty Ones: Meet the Cast", "Krampus and His Minions", "Practical Danger", "Inside the Snow Globe: Production Design"), a behind-the-scenes look at the special effects ("Behind the Scenes at Weta Workshop: Krampus"), a few galleries, a DVD copy, and a digital copy of the film.

Krampus is the definitive Christmas horror, which isn't a hard feat considering how bad holiday horror films usually are. Doughtery injects his film with equal parts terror and laughs, for a game cast that never lets the proceedings get too dark. It may not whet every appetite, but for those who like their comedy with horror, Krampus is a dastardly holiday treat.

The Verdict

This one is on the naughty list for all the right reasons.

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