Krampus

Having already given horror fans Trick 'r Treat for Halloween, director Michael Dougherty turns his attention to Christmas, delivering festive escapement and frights with Krampus, in which an evil creature - an 'anti-Santa' - pays a visit to a family who have lost their seasonal spirit.

I'm not one for saccharine, family-friendly Xmas movies with a cheery ending (my initials aren't BAH for nothing), and I relish the thought of some demented Christmas comedy/horror. Krampus takes a while to get into the swing of things, but once it does, it's non-stop fun, getting darker and darker as it goes on.

Things start out light-hearted enough, with an amusing opening credits sequence that mocks the commercialism of Christmas, and the film continues in this manner up to the moment when disillusioned Santa fan Max (Emjay Anthony) tears up his letter to the jolly old man, an act that is as good as an invitation to Krampus and his helpers.

From hereon-in, it's twisted entertainment, as the family (including their National Lampoon's Vacation-style relatives) are captured one-by-one by the horned, cloven-hoofed Krampus, a gang of wicked ginger-bread men, a massive jack-in-a-box, a terrible teddy, a creepy doll, and some nasty elves. Dougherty handles the action with skill, providing moderate scares and silliness in the vein of that other holiday comedy/horror classic, Gremlins.

After a lot of enjoyable Chrimbo chaos, with Max's family all captured by Krampus, it looks as though Dougherty has run out of ideas with an 'it was all a dream' conclusion, but a final shot ensures us that all is not as it seems.

While not quite in the same league as Gremlins (largely thanks to the slow start and a lack of Phoebe Cates), Krampus should provide those who struggle with seasonal cheer with a few ho-ho-hos and some memorable monster fun.

Three days before Christmas, a suburban family gets together to celebrate the holidays.

One child named Max wants to continue the family's Christmas traditions, but tensions between members of the family keep everyone from having a good time and the family lose their Christmas spirit, especially Max, who rips up his letter to Santa and throws it to the wind after his cousins read it out at the dinner table Shortly afterwards, a severe blizzard appears and cuts out power in the entire town and Christmas will never be the same.

Now Despite it's Christmas Background this film is anything but cherry. In fact this film is one of the best main stream horror films produced in quit some time.

In this film we get a cross between "Night of the Living Dead" and "Gremlins". If your fans of those films then you will enjoy this movie.

If you have small children please do not let them watch this.

Sags a bit in the middle but Michael Dougherty's Christmas scare, 'Krampus,' still offers tons of fun for the audience. It's both lighthearted and funny but also surprisingly horrifying. The movie features strong acting all around with leads Adam Scott, Toni Collette, and David Koechner providing wonderful performances. 'Krampus' also features a wealth of fantastic effects, from the evil toys, to the elves, and especially Krampus himself. There is no lack of great creature effects.

Krampus (2015) is a movie I recently rented off Amazon Prime for $3.99. The storyline follows a young man whose family seems to be falling apart and just in time for Christmas. He can't believe this is happening and decides to curse the holiday not knowing his actions may lead to a visit from the opposite of Santa Claus, Krampus, who hunts down bad boys and girls.

This movie is directed by Michael Dougherty (Trick 'r Treat) and stars Adam Scott (Step Brothers), Toni Collette (Hereditary), David Koechner (Anchorman), Stefania LaVie Owen (The Lovely Bones), Conchata Ferrell (Edward Scissorhands) and the voice of Seth Green (Robot Chicken).

This is far and away the best cast in a Krampus movie. The storyline is also the best written and executed and I loved how they delivered Krampus and his movements. The house running sequence is an A+ delivery of him and was very entertaining. Some of the closeup shots of him were uneven (I liked him better as a man than monster), but it didn't detract too much from the movie. This also has a solid conclusion.

Overall this is definitely a must see and fun film. I'd score this a 7/10 and strongly recommend seeing it.

"Krampus", based on actual folklore in Germany and Austria, may not be without faults, but damn if it isn't a reasonably impressive new addition to the canon of Yuletide genre movies. It starts out as an obnoxious domestic comedy, as one family welcomes their grating relatives in for the holidays. Young Max, played by the very appealing Emjay Anthony, is so distraught by the friction between his kin that he destroys his letter to Santa and turns his back on the Christmas season. Big mistake: an imposing demon named Krampus makes it his mission to punish - make that SEVERELY punish - all those who lose their hopes and beliefs. Soon, horrible weather conditions presage an escalating series of terrors for Max and company.

Co-written and directed by Michael Dougherty, who also gave us a modern Halloween favorite in the form of "Trick r Treat", this is surprisingly engaging entertainment. However, it's not so much a horror comedy, as it is a full-blown horror movie with some moments of levity. Despite the PG-13 rating, it's not for the youngest members of your own family due to some incredible intensity. It does take on the tones of a nightmare.

It does have its pleasures, such as a rich variety of "monsters", which are huge, hideous abominations of familiar toys and goodies. (This viewers' personal favorite was the anaconda sized Jack in the box.) There is some very potent atmosphere and quite a bit of macabre imagery filling up the 2.35:1 frame.

How one responds to the protagonists will most likely affect how they respond to the film. Yours truly wouldn't have minded seeing almost everybody get theirs. Still, the actors give it 100%: Adam Scott and Toni Collette as Maxs' parents, David Koechner as the gun loving uncle, Conchata Ferrell as the grumpy great aunt, and Krista Stadler as the wise grandmother who knows the score, right from the start.

A solid diversion overall, with some groan inducing dialogue and moments but quite a bit of energy & pizazz and a twisted nature.

Seven out of 10.