A low budget disaster of epic proportions. My friend picked this up at Wal-Mart for $10 and we were a little excited for it because we love Krampus movies. This missed the mark on every single aspect imaginable. Don't waste your time. Go and see the Krampus in theaters. And the special effects in this movie are really bad. I would avoid this film at all costs. The costumes were questionable, the acting is sub-par, and the location of filming is not a good choice.The Krampus movie that was released in 2015 gave Krampus a look of creepy this movie just makes you seem So lost at what is happening. Not a good movie I do not recommend unless you want to be bored and lost. Go see the new one.
50 Reviews
Very Bad
CourtneyHaroldBarker13 October 2014
If you are looking for a terrible Christmas movie look no further. even for a budget of 200k is disappointing to say the least. if you want a GOOD horror Christmas movie to watch then i would recommend "Santa's Slay". side note! even the creators of this "movie" (if it can even be called one) knew it was bad! judging from all the bot accounts they created to rate this atrocity! they didn't even bother to shoot the movie with a descent cam! they used of all thing a VHS came! I mean really? you had at least 200k and didn't bother to buy what could be considered the most important thing to make the movie? please do us all a favor and never make another movie.
Not Even Bad Enough to Be Accidentally Funny
bournemouthbear9 October 2015
Krampus: The Christmas Devil (2013)
In the very same week that saw director Michael Dougherty's trailer for the Adam Scott/Toni Collette starrer Krampus (2015) take off on the internet I suddenly received this screener evidently being rush-released on retail in the UK to cash-in by the title character association. For those of you that didn't know Krampus is Santa Claus' evil brother according to ancient mythology. Whereas his chubby sibling takes to dishing out presents to the good boys and girls of the world, Krampus is about dishing out punishment to those children that have been naughty. In this, director Jason Hull's third film, Krampus takes the form of punishment to the more extreme, he doesn't just punish them he kills them too.
Back in 1983 one such child, Jeremy (Jared Sidun), manages to escape Krampus. Years later Jeremy is a police officer (now played by A.J. Leslie). Jeremy is tormented and hell-bent on killing the monster who fortunately happens to have concentrated his efforts in Jeremy's neck- of-the-woods again. If that wasn't enough to trouble for our hero, he soon learns that the beast has his eyes on Jeremy's daughter. There's also the niggling matter of a recently released felon Brian Hatt (Bill Oberst) that seeks vengeance for Jeremy having incarcerating him.
At its very best Krampus: The Christmas Devil is an ill-conceived mess that's not even so bad as to be funny. It's so bad it actually hurts you to watch it. There's awful oversights in plotting for the convenience of plotting. Also quite why no one has been able to locate our titular demon is rather astonishing given that he seems to move at a remarkably slow pace - the sort of pace that even someone with riddled with chronic arthritis through both legs would even manage to out walk - and he carries out most of his victim kidnapping in the plain sight of day in populated locations. And yet no one seems to know where he is. Just look out of your window. There he is. Seriously!
Surely there are naughty kids the world over for Krampus to put a grisly end to but alas no, he seems to be concentrated on this dull little place in the middle of nowhere rather than taking his efforts globally. Perhaps he's just lazy. And what constitutes being a naughty child? Well apparently having a hissy fit during a game of Monopoly is enough for a snot-nosed brat to labelled a naughty child and added to Krampus' hit list.
Krampus seems rather tame compared to his 'brother' Santa Claus who cusses and rages with an anger sadly lacking in our title character. But then everything in this flick is here for shock effect rather than reason undermining what passes for a plot and reducing the flick to a collection of barely amateur performances that pain you to sit through. And what's with Krampus' hands? As Krampus traces his fingers upon a victim they bend up, just like an ill-fitting glove bought from a bog standard fancy dress shop, because, yes, that's exactly what they are. Genre favourite Bill Oberst Jr. has a small role in the film but it's yet another appearance by an otherwise competent actor in a below standard flick that is chipping away at his former solid career track record.
Krampus The Christmas Devil is yet another title that has been afforded great reviews on-line that it doesn't merit effectively discrediting the purpose of effective criticism. If the reviews have been written by friends of the director then I will insist that they write his next flick for him as their writing is rather more effective than his own.
Check out more of my reviews at www.mybloodyreviews.com
In the very same week that saw director Michael Dougherty's trailer for the Adam Scott/Toni Collette starrer Krampus (2015) take off on the internet I suddenly received this screener evidently being rush-released on retail in the UK to cash-in by the title character association. For those of you that didn't know Krampus is Santa Claus' evil brother according to ancient mythology. Whereas his chubby sibling takes to dishing out presents to the good boys and girls of the world, Krampus is about dishing out punishment to those children that have been naughty. In this, director Jason Hull's third film, Krampus takes the form of punishment to the more extreme, he doesn't just punish them he kills them too.
Back in 1983 one such child, Jeremy (Jared Sidun), manages to escape Krampus. Years later Jeremy is a police officer (now played by A.J. Leslie). Jeremy is tormented and hell-bent on killing the monster who fortunately happens to have concentrated his efforts in Jeremy's neck- of-the-woods again. If that wasn't enough to trouble for our hero, he soon learns that the beast has his eyes on Jeremy's daughter. There's also the niggling matter of a recently released felon Brian Hatt (Bill Oberst) that seeks vengeance for Jeremy having incarcerating him.
At its very best Krampus: The Christmas Devil is an ill-conceived mess that's not even so bad as to be funny. It's so bad it actually hurts you to watch it. There's awful oversights in plotting for the convenience of plotting. Also quite why no one has been able to locate our titular demon is rather astonishing given that he seems to move at a remarkably slow pace - the sort of pace that even someone with riddled with chronic arthritis through both legs would even manage to out walk - and he carries out most of his victim kidnapping in the plain sight of day in populated locations. And yet no one seems to know where he is. Just look out of your window. There he is. Seriously!
Surely there are naughty kids the world over for Krampus to put a grisly end to but alas no, he seems to be concentrated on this dull little place in the middle of nowhere rather than taking his efforts globally. Perhaps he's just lazy. And what constitutes being a naughty child? Well apparently having a hissy fit during a game of Monopoly is enough for a snot-nosed brat to labelled a naughty child and added to Krampus' hit list.
Krampus seems rather tame compared to his 'brother' Santa Claus who cusses and rages with an anger sadly lacking in our title character. But then everything in this flick is here for shock effect rather than reason undermining what passes for a plot and reducing the flick to a collection of barely amateur performances that pain you to sit through. And what's with Krampus' hands? As Krampus traces his fingers upon a victim they bend up, just like an ill-fitting glove bought from a bog standard fancy dress shop, because, yes, that's exactly what they are. Genre favourite Bill Oberst Jr. has a small role in the film but it's yet another appearance by an otherwise competent actor in a below standard flick that is chipping away at his former solid career track record.
Krampus The Christmas Devil is yet another title that has been afforded great reviews on-line that it doesn't merit effectively discrediting the purpose of effective criticism. If the reviews have been written by friends of the director then I will insist that they write his next flick for him as their writing is rather more effective than his own.
Check out more of my reviews at www.mybloodyreviews.com
Christmas with the Kramps
dcarsonhagy1 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Seems several indie companies are trying to get ahead (or profit from) the release of the upcoming big-budgeted "Krampus," so they have managed to produce one bowel movement after another. The other review I read of this piece of garbage kinda' says it all: you'll have to go some distance to find ANY movie that's worse than this one.
It seems Krampus only comes around on Christmas Eve. He has until Midnight to do his dirty work, i.e. collecting all the BAD boys and girls who have misbehaved before Christmas. He then finds them, puts them in a gunny sack, and does various and sundry things to them. Why the naked girl with huge boobs was in his lair still has me scratching my head, but I digress.
Where on earth do people get funding for this garbage? If you want to do a movie about a demon who's (get this) Santa Clause's brother, can't you find an interesting plot line somewhere along the way? Could you at least have them at loggerheads over what one of them is doing? Not here. Santa Clause is shown ogling the naked woman with big boobs before he manages to cop a feel. What a wonderful message to any kid who might see this: Guess what, honey? Santa Clause is really a foul-mouthed pervert.
This s*it stain of a movie is awful, and if IMDb had a "zero" star rating, this would certainly get one. Rated "R" and not recommended for children or pre-teens. This is trash, pure and simple.
It seems Krampus only comes around on Christmas Eve. He has until Midnight to do his dirty work, i.e. collecting all the BAD boys and girls who have misbehaved before Christmas. He then finds them, puts them in a gunny sack, and does various and sundry things to them. Why the naked girl with huge boobs was in his lair still has me scratching my head, but I digress.
Where on earth do people get funding for this garbage? If you want to do a movie about a demon who's (get this) Santa Clause's brother, can't you find an interesting plot line somewhere along the way? Could you at least have them at loggerheads over what one of them is doing? Not here. Santa Clause is shown ogling the naked woman with big boobs before he manages to cop a feel. What a wonderful message to any kid who might see this: Guess what, honey? Santa Clause is really a foul-mouthed pervert.
This s*it stain of a movie is awful, and if IMDb had a "zero" star rating, this would certainly get one. Rated "R" and not recommended for children or pre-teens. This is trash, pure and simple.
Oh My God!
dewittra26 December 2014
I stopped counting how many flaws I found in this movie. From the painfully obvious rubber gloves on Krampus, to the news reporter who was on channel 9 but said she was on channel 12 (could be wrong channels, I forget now, but NO WAY was I going back to confirm). The bar scene with an audio track depicting a large crowd, no one there. The gratuitous topless girl who was there for absolutely NO reason but the director felt a pair of tits would help ratings? Kudos to the girl, that even though her scene was unnecessary, she has very nice breasts. The only thing good in the movie but still not worth wading through the minutia of bad footage to see her. Blood changes color, makeup was horrid! The acting was abysmal! IMDb did not have a budget listed for this movie. I have a feeling the producers, director, actors, whoever had to pay IMDb to list this piece of crap. If ANYONE gives it more than the lowest rating of 1 star, they were part of the cast. This movie? was something right out of Jr. High theater at best. I give it a gawdawful. You want to see it? You've been warned.
Waste of your time!!
davannacarter9 December 2014
There are 3 types of movies: 1) movies good enough to watch from beginning to end without fast-forwarding; 2) terrible movies where you can't suppress your urge to fast-forward through them; 3) godawful movies where you realize even fast-forwarding through them would be a waste of time.
Kraptacular...er...I mean Krampus the Christmas Devil is in the number 3 category. I started ff-ing 30 minutes in then by 68 minutes I just decided to turn it off. I just said, "Nah, I can't watch this piece of garbage. I have better things to do with my time, like watch water boil." This movie is the very definition of amateur. It looks like the director got an camera, went to his local roadside bar and said, "Hey guys, I have a camera. Wanna make a movie with me?" They asked, "What's in it for us?" He replied, "Free beer." Then they said, "I'm in." Seriously. I 100% believe that's how it happened.
Acting: homeless people off the street couldn't be worse.
Dialogue: cringeworthy (and that's being generous).
Suspense: none.
Scariness of the monster: looks like they bought it entirely from Walmart, including the mask. Even a junior high kid could make a better costume (and a better movie).
Quality of the kills: even the average Found Footage is more graphic.
This movie is so awful I actually asked IMDb if they could allow reviewers to give a negative or a 0-star rating. Still no reply. But I'm sure if they saw this movie they'd allow reviewers at least to make 0-stars.
Kraptacular...er...I mean Krampus the Christmas Devil is in the number 3 category. I started ff-ing 30 minutes in then by 68 minutes I just decided to turn it off. I just said, "Nah, I can't watch this piece of garbage. I have better things to do with my time, like watch water boil." This movie is the very definition of amateur. It looks like the director got an camera, went to his local roadside bar and said, "Hey guys, I have a camera. Wanna make a movie with me?" They asked, "What's in it for us?" He replied, "Free beer." Then they said, "I'm in." Seriously. I 100% believe that's how it happened.
Acting: homeless people off the street couldn't be worse.
Dialogue: cringeworthy (and that's being generous).
Suspense: none.
Scariness of the monster: looks like they bought it entirely from Walmart, including the mask. Even a junior high kid could make a better costume (and a better movie).
Quality of the kills: even the average Found Footage is more graphic.
This movie is so awful I actually asked IMDb if they could allow reviewers to give a negative or a 0-star rating. Still no reply. But I'm sure if they saw this movie they'd allow reviewers at least to make 0-stars.
God Awful - Waste of Time
xil-5486623 May 2016
This movie-- if you dare to even call it that, is HORRID. If you do consider watching this movie, be warned, it's an hour of your life you could be doing better, more enjoyable things... Like cleaning your toilet, I'm not even joking... I wish I was.
I will be taking note of the actors, and the producer and will NEVER watch anything they produce in the future. Considering the year of this movie, they have failed. The special effects are terrible, the story is drab and dull, almost as dull as trying to cut a watermelon with a dry slice of bread.
Seriously, if you're reading this review-- DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND JUST FIND SOMETHING ELSE, or go for a walk, maybe take up a new hobby, but for the love of god, do not waste your time like I did.
I will be taking note of the actors, and the producer and will NEVER watch anything they produce in the future. Considering the year of this movie, they have failed. The special effects are terrible, the story is drab and dull, almost as dull as trying to cut a watermelon with a dry slice of bread.
Seriously, if you're reading this review-- DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND JUST FIND SOMETHING ELSE, or go for a walk, maybe take up a new hobby, but for the love of god, do not waste your time like I did.
dear lord
danpanik-795-39141826 December 2014
Jason Hull had something great going for him. He jumped in on the ground floor of the ever growing love of the Krampus legend. Then he took all the money he collected to make the film and spent it on hookers and PCP. I figured that this film was going to be a giant piece of crap but considering the supposed budget and hype of the film (being the first to tackle Krampus) I figured it would at least be an entertaining kind of bad. instead its a complete mess of detective drama/serial killer thriller/and horror film. Almost unwatchable even if you ignore how Jason completely ignores every bit of the krampus legend and instead turns this into a bad episode of Law and Order SVU. Ruined my Christmas. And my life
"Proof that talent is no obstacle to opportunity."
kushpa31 December 2015
My first year student film in college was better than this turd, for which there isn't enough polish in the world to even give a glimmer.
An old college buddy of mine actually made a little spoof/mockumentary about asshats who get a camera and a budget and have NO idea what the hell they're doing. It's really funny if you're a filmmaker, lots of in jokes, free, and DEFINITELY better entertainment than this pile of manure:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wBKVNO22gc
1-10 Ratings: =========
Dialogue = 0 (lines don't even make sense sometimes, like when the two cops are talking to each other in the police station, it's like they just mined the cheesiest dialogue from the worst cop movies ever made)
Plot = 0 (I've seen 2 other Krampus movies, and I STILL don't know what the hell THIS story is about)
Acting = 0 (your grandmother can act better than any one of these talentless hacks)
Cinematography = 0 (non-existent, doubt the "filmmaker" even knows the meaning of the word)
Costumes = 0 (I think my 8 year old nephew could come up with a better costume than this on a budget of $10 at the Dollar Store)
OVERALL = 0 (staring at a bucket of water with a ruler in it to measure condensation would be more fun, I'd take 12 inches of evaporation over the torture of the 1 hour and 20 minutes I just endured)
An old college buddy of mine actually made a little spoof/mockumentary about asshats who get a camera and a budget and have NO idea what the hell they're doing. It's really funny if you're a filmmaker, lots of in jokes, free, and DEFINITELY better entertainment than this pile of manure:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wBKVNO22gc
1-10 Ratings: =========
Dialogue = 0 (lines don't even make sense sometimes, like when the two cops are talking to each other in the police station, it's like they just mined the cheesiest dialogue from the worst cop movies ever made)
Plot = 0 (I've seen 2 other Krampus movies, and I STILL don't know what the hell THIS story is about)
Acting = 0 (your grandmother can act better than any one of these talentless hacks)
Cinematography = 0 (non-existent, doubt the "filmmaker" even knows the meaning of the word)
Costumes = 0 (I think my 8 year old nephew could come up with a better costume than this on a budget of $10 at the Dollar Store)
OVERALL = 0 (staring at a bucket of water with a ruler in it to measure condensation would be more fun, I'd take 12 inches of evaporation over the torture of the 1 hour and 20 minutes I just endured)
Crapus
shawnblackman1 October 2016
A low budget horror that is pretty damn bad. This one has Krampus taking orders from Santa as to who goes and who doesn't then before you know it a kid will be in a burlap bag headed for the frozen lake and he can only kill kids until midnight Christmas Eve. Krampus has a kid escape and decides to get him years later at the same time a psycho killer (Bill Oberst Jr.) gets out of jail hunting down the same guy for putting him in jail. You think this could be interesting well it just sucked. A different side of Krampus is shown as he keeps naked women chained in his lair to play with.
This one doesn't have anything going for it at all except for some scenes with Bill Oberst Jr. who always does a good job. Krampus never really comes off scary. In some scenes he was moving like the sped up Benny Hill. Santa looks like a drunk getting ready for a mall gig. Avoid this flick. Maybe just watch your toes wiggle instead.
This one doesn't have anything going for it at all except for some scenes with Bill Oberst Jr. who always does a good job. Krampus never really comes off scary. In some scenes he was moving like the sped up Benny Hill. Santa looks like a drunk getting ready for a mall gig. Avoid this flick. Maybe just watch your toes wiggle instead.
Masterpiece
caeroygamsel21 December 2019
This is absolutely the best film on earth, its high art. The finest movie ive ever seen. I wish it was still on Netflix so I could watch it more often, must watch dont hesitate, buy it if you have to. You need this movie in your life.
Better than ELVES ('89) and That's not being naughty !
guestar577 October 2013
Stars : Bill Oberst,Jr. and Rich Goteri. Written & Directed by : Jason Hull. Have to digress abit,In the '90s critiqued a video ( VHS ) ELVES which starred Dan Haggerty as Santa vs Nazi Xmas Elves.Watched it every Christmas after till tape broke,KRAMPUS has given us a new viewing tradition for next annual ritual . So, We don't want to do spoilers and such, But,Santa is in Krampus along with the demon himself. Actually well told script has a cop who was on Naughty List and grew out of it. Lots of violence and cool deaths,Is that a oxymoron statement ? Winter equals snow and locale adds lots to look of film. This has all the makings of a cult film,Would build a better poster and maybe push the great soundtrack.
Amateurish Garbage
claudio_carvalho20 October 2015
I believe this is the first time that I have watched a movie that is practically unanimity in the IMDb User Rating. "Krampus: The Christmas Devil" is rated one star (awful) by eight (8) users (including me) out of 10 that have written a review in IMDb (meaning 80%).
The story and screenplay are dreadful mess. The direction is awful and the performances are amateurish. There are no scenarios and the cast seems to be using the houses and the bar of friends. The lighting is inexistent and the special effects are terrible. My vote is one (awful).
Title (Brazil): "Krampus: O Justiceiro do Mal" ("Krampus: The Evil Vigilante")
The story and screenplay are dreadful mess. The direction is awful and the performances are amateurish. There are no scenarios and the cast seems to be using the houses and the bar of friends. The lighting is inexistent and the special effects are terrible. My vote is one (awful).
Title (Brazil): "Krampus: O Justiceiro do Mal" ("Krampus: The Evil Vigilante")
Plain and simple: You must believe in Santa Claus to like this piece of trash!
alshwenbear18 December 2014
1. You must live outside of civilization to like this movie.
2. You must be a true redneck to like this awfulness.
3. You must have seen Santa Claus in an episode of "Sons of Anarchy" "My Brother" LOL!!!
4. You must love the worst of acting and direction with your popcorn.
5. You must like garble sounds as pathetic soundtrack.
6. You must like to be on an open space with snow, and walk like an ape
7. You must write a fake review and try to pass it as legit.
8. You must snore and slap yourself to be awake all the way to the first half hour.
9. You must own an 8mm handy cam
10. You must be an idiot to like this piece of trash!
How easy to get ten lines, I just need to repeat "You must" as the "actors" and "director" repeat the awful patterns of dumbness for this movie.
2. You must be a true redneck to like this awfulness.
3. You must have seen Santa Claus in an episode of "Sons of Anarchy" "My Brother" LOL!!!
4. You must love the worst of acting and direction with your popcorn.
5. You must like garble sounds as pathetic soundtrack.
6. You must like to be on an open space with snow, and walk like an ape
7. You must write a fake review and try to pass it as legit.
8. You must snore and slap yourself to be awake all the way to the first half hour.
9. You must own an 8mm handy cam
10. You must be an idiot to like this piece of trash!
How easy to get ten lines, I just need to repeat "You must" as the "actors" and "director" repeat the awful patterns of dumbness for this movie.
This ruined my Christmas
jordanforster-3962827 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
It's hard to say where to begin when telling you how bad this film is. I'm a fan of all sorts of horror, classic slasher movies, gore, clever...but not this. The acting is terrible and all involved just sound as if they're reading their lines from the page. Also appears to have been edited on Windows Movie Maker judging by the transitions. I'm all for a good budget horror, but this was almost unbearable. Storyline was pretty weak, with the addition of a separate storyline towards the end which seemed to have absolutely no relation to the film. Krampus wasn't mentioned for about 20 minutes then suddenly reappeared again. What? The only redeeming factor to this film is it's absolutely hilarious to watch Norris skipping across the snow in stealth mode, so if you were going to watch it turn it off after that. Merry Krampus, and don't waste your time watching this.
Where did the money go?
rherring-160405 December 2020
A budget of over 7.5 million?!?!?!?They must have spent 7.4 of it on beer and weed because this movie looks like it was made by a bunch of high-schoolers....I gave it an extra star for the boobs and the soundtrack, otherwise it would have rated a 1...
Really bad.
mangoust819 November 2016
Warning: Spoilers
I don't normally review movies, I usually stick to restaurants and attractions/hotels....But when I do review a movie, it usually means that it was so bad it got me angry to the point that I felt the need to come online and whine about it. I wanted to stop watching this abomination after the first scene...But I couldn't. That's how bad it was. It was so bad that I kept watching so I could learn how not to make a movie. « Your husband is a piece of s*** you know. He said I raped a little girl....I did but you know.... » -_- Let's shove kids in bags and throw them in frozen ponds while they're still alive. Lets film a close-up scene of a naked woman to try and make this more interesting. My God, I don't even want to waste more time complaining about this movie. Do not do this to yourself. Don't watch this movie.
You just made the list
nogodnomasters17 April 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Krampus (Brad Weaver) is given a list by his brother Santa (Paul Fern) of bad kids who deserve killing. Jeremy Duffin (A.J. Leslie) was such a kid, but he got away. Now as an adult he is a police deputy and obsessed with finding the child killer. When the killings again start to happen his posse goes hunting.
This was a film that was so bad, it was good...at least in several places such as Santa berating a child; the fake heart still beating, and the young Jeremy being dragged in a sack and tossed in a frozen pond. However some of the film plot was undeveloped. What was that bar fight about? The last name on the list- seriously?
I liked the opening credits and the music during the opening and closing credits..."We Party with the Elves." The film needed a little extra something. The cop conversation at the bar displayed some really bad acting and dialogue.
Would be okay as a Redbox rental.
Guide: F-bomb, forced grope, nudity (Playboy's Angelina Leigh)
This was a film that was so bad, it was good...at least in several places such as Santa berating a child; the fake heart still beating, and the young Jeremy being dragged in a sack and tossed in a frozen pond. However some of the film plot was undeveloped. What was that bar fight about? The last name on the list- seriously?
I liked the opening credits and the music during the opening and closing credits..."We Party with the Elves." The film needed a little extra something. The cop conversation at the bar displayed some really bad acting and dialogue.
Would be okay as a Redbox rental.
Guide: F-bomb, forced grope, nudity (Playboy's Angelina Leigh)
Avoid like the Plague
FJWWindsor17 August 2017
This movie is so pathetically bad that the only thing I could think of was that the film makers made it intentionally that way to vie for the title of Worst Movie Ever Made. Dialogue is wretched, the acting even worse. The costumes look like they were developed by grade school kids on a budget. The FX and CGI deplorable.
Do yourself a BIG favor and skip it.
(However, I must admit, I'm the idiot in this drama, as I kept seeing the Krampus trailer on other DVDs and was intrigued. Little did I know that there's something like seven of these films made, and I really wanted the 2015 version. Might give that one a chance).
Do yourself a BIG favor and skip it.
(However, I must admit, I'm the idiot in this drama, as I kept seeing the Krampus trailer on other DVDs and was intrigued. Little did I know that there's something like seven of these films made, and I really wanted the 2015 version. Might give that one a chance).
More indie Krampus trash
Leofwine_draca28 December 2017
Warning: Spoilers
KRAMPUS: THE CHRISTMAS DEVIL is another slice of indie trash cashing in on the now-popular Krampus legend. The story is about a bald cop with a sinister past who investigates the recurrence of a number of missing children cases and soon finds that there might be a supernatural explanation. I had high hopes for this story's plot, but in the end it turns out to be another boring exercise in torture porn tedium, with bad acting throughout and below-par production values. Indie regular Bill Oberst Jr. is the best thing in this but has little to do.
Wow
brandoncsmith-372005 July 2021
Devilish naughty list
TheLittleSongbird28 July 2018
'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' drew me into seeing it, with a cool poster/cover, an intriguing if not particularly original premise and as someone with a general appreciation for horror. That it was not high-budget, which from frequent personal experience is rarely a good sign due to that there are so many poor ones out there, made me though apprehensive as well as the low rating and poor reviews.
It is sadly however yet another film seen recently, hence some reiteration because the exact same strengths and flaws those films have are present here, that to me was incredibly disappointing considering its potential which it doesn't do anywhere near enough with. 'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' is terrible, with a plethora of enormous problems. Generally Krampus films (especially low budget ones) have not fared well and 'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' does nothing to change that. There is next to nothing to recommend.
Lets start with the sole positive. The setting is atmospheric and spooky.
Unfortunately, it is not done justice by the rather direct to video schlocky way it's shot and edited and the drab colour palette, so much so it was hard to appreciate it, it was very clear that the film was made in a rush with no care or enthusiasm. In particular, the camera work was a nauseous assault on the eyes with its excessive amateurish-ness.
Going on further to the negatives, the story does feel paper thin, disjointed and over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their annoying and illogical decision making and behaviours frustrates.
Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into The sound quality is obvious and utilised cheaply (being too loud in the build ups and people's reactions) and it's best not mentioning the uniformly lumbering and histrionic acting that shows a huge indifference to the situation and what is going on and extremely awkward prolonged pauses.
Dialogue can be stilted and rambling, with lots of clichés, lots of unintentional humour that makes some of the film play like a really bad spoof and no depth whatsoever, while the pace goes to a standstill very quickly and drags on forever with very little going on worth caring about and useless padding, never recovering. The minimal action wouldn't have mattered so much if the character development was present or engaging, instead not enough is learnt about the characters, the exposition is too heavily relied upon and is neither interesting or illuminating, actually dragging things down. Found too many of the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness, a lot of dumb and vague moments and explanations and the lack of tension and suspense. Would not have minded the lack of originality (the film is extremely derivative and in a dumbed and watered down way) if the story and atmosphere were at least alright in execution, in reality they were both very poorly done.
A lot of 'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' has underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations, while too many of the things to make you jump or shocked are far from creative or scary and are pretty tame. The ending didn't satisfy and felt anaemic and the whole thing felt like an over-stretched-to-beyond-breaking-point short film.
There is not enough threat, and what there is of it tends to be used poorly, is just as poorly designed and so laughably done it doesn't frighten at all. The film is completely unimaginative and more odd than creepy, completely failing to show any sense of horror or creativity. Everything here is neither creative, suspenseful or nail-biting. Some badly sagging momentum too. The direction is leaden and like their heart was not in it or ill at ease, with the chemistry between the characters and actors coming over as constantly random and aggressive with the subtlety of an axe. The Christmas spirit is completely lost underneath all the gratuity, dreariness and mean-spiritedness and the deaths are neither creative or scary with a complete lack of suspense or sense of horror.
Overall, awful with no redeeming value apart from an element that is difficult to appreciate with it being complemented so badly. 1/10 Bethany Cox
It is sadly however yet another film seen recently, hence some reiteration because the exact same strengths and flaws those films have are present here, that to me was incredibly disappointing considering its potential which it doesn't do anywhere near enough with. 'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' is terrible, with a plethora of enormous problems. Generally Krampus films (especially low budget ones) have not fared well and 'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' does nothing to change that. There is next to nothing to recommend.
Lets start with the sole positive. The setting is atmospheric and spooky.
Unfortunately, it is not done justice by the rather direct to video schlocky way it's shot and edited and the drab colour palette, so much so it was hard to appreciate it, it was very clear that the film was made in a rush with no care or enthusiasm. In particular, the camera work was a nauseous assault on the eyes with its excessive amateurish-ness.
Going on further to the negatives, the story does feel paper thin, disjointed and over-stretched and some of it feels vague, under-explained in the last third where the film especially became duller, more predictable, more senseless and less scary. Too many characters are too sketchy and with nowhere near enough to make one want to endear to them. Their annoying and illogical decision making and behaviours frustrates.
Making the film feel bland and forgettable with not enough heart put into The sound quality is obvious and utilised cheaply (being too loud in the build ups and people's reactions) and it's best not mentioning the uniformly lumbering and histrionic acting that shows a huge indifference to the situation and what is going on and extremely awkward prolonged pauses.
Dialogue can be stilted and rambling, with lots of clichés, lots of unintentional humour that makes some of the film play like a really bad spoof and no depth whatsoever, while the pace goes to a standstill very quickly and drags on forever with very little going on worth caring about and useless padding, never recovering. The minimal action wouldn't have mattered so much if the character development was present or engaging, instead not enough is learnt about the characters, the exposition is too heavily relied upon and is neither interesting or illuminating, actually dragging things down. Found too many of the supposedly shocking moments not surprising or scary and the supposedly creepy atmosphere dreary, due to the excessive obviousness, a lot of dumb and vague moments and explanations and the lack of tension and suspense. Would not have minded the lack of originality (the film is extremely derivative and in a dumbed and watered down way) if the story and atmosphere were at least alright in execution, in reality they were both very poorly done.
A lot of 'Krampus: The Christmas Devil' has underdeveloped plot elements and often nonsensical and confusing character motivations, while too many of the things to make you jump or shocked are far from creative or scary and are pretty tame. The ending didn't satisfy and felt anaemic and the whole thing felt like an over-stretched-to-beyond-breaking-point short film.
There is not enough threat, and what there is of it tends to be used poorly, is just as poorly designed and so laughably done it doesn't frighten at all. The film is completely unimaginative and more odd than creepy, completely failing to show any sense of horror or creativity. Everything here is neither creative, suspenseful or nail-biting. Some badly sagging momentum too. The direction is leaden and like their heart was not in it or ill at ease, with the chemistry between the characters and actors coming over as constantly random and aggressive with the subtlety of an axe. The Christmas spirit is completely lost underneath all the gratuity, dreariness and mean-spiritedness and the deaths are neither creative or scary with a complete lack of suspense or sense of horror.
Overall, awful with no redeeming value apart from an element that is difficult to appreciate with it being complemented so badly. 1/10 Bethany Cox
Christmas cheap creature freature
MonsterVision9926 December 2019
Far from being one of the best of its kind, Krampus manages to be somewhat entertaining whenever the actual Krampus shows up and murders people.
Its a very serviceable exploitation film with enough gore, monster screentime and topless women chained in a cave to be a bit enjoyable but it suffers a lot from pacing issues, seemingly effortless sound design, clunky acting, disposable characters and an uninteresting plot executed quite blandly.
Its a very serviceable exploitation film with enough gore, monster screentime and topless women chained in a cave to be a bit enjoyable but it suffers a lot from pacing issues, seemingly effortless sound design, clunky acting, disposable characters and an uninteresting plot executed quite blandly.
Can somebody please give me my time back?
HeCameFromNowhere3 October 2016
I really like B series movies, even Z series. I love cheesy films, specially when it makes to horror and gore.
Yesterday, I was looking for some fun and I remembered that somebody told me about "Krampus" that it was "a funny and entertaining movie". So I found this out on Netflix and started to watch it. At the beginning, I couldn't understand how a film like that (like if it was made by a junkie going cold turkey) had distribution on Netflix when there are hidden gems without distribution everywhere... but normally I have the same taste as the guy who told me that it was a funny flick, so I waited for it to get better... and the moment never ever came.
1 and a half hours absolutely lost. No fun, no gore. Nothing special. Just a junkie with a new camera thinking that he can do a movie.
Do yourself a favor: keep on searching for something else to watch.
Yesterday, I was looking for some fun and I remembered that somebody told me about "Krampus" that it was "a funny and entertaining movie". So I found this out on Netflix and started to watch it. At the beginning, I couldn't understand how a film like that (like if it was made by a junkie going cold turkey) had distribution on Netflix when there are hidden gems without distribution everywhere... but normally I have the same taste as the guy who told me that it was a funny flick, so I waited for it to get better... and the moment never ever came.
1 and a half hours absolutely lost. No fun, no gore. Nothing special. Just a junkie with a new camera thinking that he can do a movie.
Do yourself a favor: keep on searching for something else to watch.
Severely disappointing and barely-there Krampus horror effort
kannibalcorpsegrinder14 December 2019
Following a rash of child abductions, a police officer with a connection to the killer from his own child abduction story learns that his perpetrator was none other than the evil Krampus who's out carrying out his deeds for the year and tries to put aside his feud with an ex-convict to bring the demon down.
There wasn't much to like with this one. Among the more enjoyable features here is the film's general setup that clues him into the goings-on in the village. Based on the early abduction and escape he endured as a kid to have gotten away from the Krampus who tried to drown him in a river, the experience he has from that situation to drive him into changing his ways to become a cop that specializes in the missing kids' case that's taking place here is a fine move. It allows for a solid investigation angle in the first half with him and the other guys tracking down the missing children which is how they manage to track it down to the creek in the woods where they first encounter it. With the situation tying nicely into the guilt he experiences over what's going on with the public outcry over the incidents being reported which gives this a nice sense of guilt for the finale, these here are the only elements the work for this one. There are quite a few issues here. The biggest problem is the fact that, for a film as short as this one is, it tends to take forever to get going as the pacing here is exceptionally slow-going. The exploits of the child-kidnapping demon that take center-stage, for the most part, are carried out at snail's pace speeds, rendering them far more comically ineffectual than anything else while the same could be said for the absolutely laughable confrontations with the creature. The police's encounter with the Krampus in the middle of the snowy woods is full of cringe-inducing action, from the slow-motion photography to try to impart a sense of grandeur to the situation to the agonizingly lame way the creature gets the advantage over them since they can't land a single hit to stop it but yet it can knock them out no problem to bring them back to its lair. These manage to hold up the running time quite severely. That also leads to the other central problem where the main figure here is so underutilized that it's hard to remember how he ties into the story at all. The storyline for the film revolves around the Krampus coming after kids in the small-town for only a brief portion overall as the shift in priority to the escaped convict and his revenge motivation against the cop for locking him up rightfully for no reason. The home invasion plot that comes of this is so poorly handled and adds nothing of any interest to the film as a whole that it seems tacked on to add another star for the poster art but is otherwise unimportant due to keeping the Krampus off-screen for the duration of this section of the film, much like the brief plot about the other cops being upset about the dead officers on his watch that goes nowhere but eats up time to keep the figure hidden. Given how bad it looks anyway, that's a mixed blessing but still stands out, keeping this one down as well.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Violence and Nudity.
There wasn't much to like with this one. Among the more enjoyable features here is the film's general setup that clues him into the goings-on in the village. Based on the early abduction and escape he endured as a kid to have gotten away from the Krampus who tried to drown him in a river, the experience he has from that situation to drive him into changing his ways to become a cop that specializes in the missing kids' case that's taking place here is a fine move. It allows for a solid investigation angle in the first half with him and the other guys tracking down the missing children which is how they manage to track it down to the creek in the woods where they first encounter it. With the situation tying nicely into the guilt he experiences over what's going on with the public outcry over the incidents being reported which gives this a nice sense of guilt for the finale, these here are the only elements the work for this one. There are quite a few issues here. The biggest problem is the fact that, for a film as short as this one is, it tends to take forever to get going as the pacing here is exceptionally slow-going. The exploits of the child-kidnapping demon that take center-stage, for the most part, are carried out at snail's pace speeds, rendering them far more comically ineffectual than anything else while the same could be said for the absolutely laughable confrontations with the creature. The police's encounter with the Krampus in the middle of the snowy woods is full of cringe-inducing action, from the slow-motion photography to try to impart a sense of grandeur to the situation to the agonizingly lame way the creature gets the advantage over them since they can't land a single hit to stop it but yet it can knock them out no problem to bring them back to its lair. These manage to hold up the running time quite severely. That also leads to the other central problem where the main figure here is so underutilized that it's hard to remember how he ties into the story at all. The storyline for the film revolves around the Krampus coming after kids in the small-town for only a brief portion overall as the shift in priority to the escaped convict and his revenge motivation against the cop for locking him up rightfully for no reason. The home invasion plot that comes of this is so poorly handled and adds nothing of any interest to the film as a whole that it seems tacked on to add another star for the poster art but is otherwise unimportant due to keeping the Krampus off-screen for the duration of this section of the film, much like the brief plot about the other cops being upset about the dead officers on his watch that goes nowhere but eats up time to keep the figure hidden. Given how bad it looks anyway, that's a mixed blessing but still stands out, keeping this one down as well.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language, Violence and Nudity.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
