I watched Krampus in the theater last year with my daughter and we loved it. I instantly felt a similarity to Gremlins while watching it. It’s a dark comedy set at Christmas with plenty of horror elements sprinkled in. The cast in Krampus is great and it became an instant favorite for the holidays. Watching it for my second time, the movie elicited the same response earning it the rating Not Quite Golden, Ponyboy.
Krampus is an instant holiday horror comedy
Max (Emjay Anthony) is at that age where people expect you to stop believing in Santa. He manages to resist as long as possible, but with his obnoxious cousins and family he finally caves. Max discards his letter to Santa and makes a silent wish that brings about a festive demon. His family is tormented over the next couple of days by Krampus and his minions.
Adam Scott needs more work. He won me over on Parks and Recreation and he’s excellent in this movie. Paired with Toni Collette as the parents of Max, you have a great lead couple to get behind. Then the sister and her husband played by Allison Tolman and David Koechner as the much less civilized pair with their four children and mean aunt (Conchata Ferrell). Max and his sister, Beth (Stefania LaVie Owen), try to get along with their cousins, but it’s the fight that triggers Max’s loss of Christmas spirit. His Omi (Krista Stadler) tries to keep his spirit up, but it’s just too much to bare.
The opening sequence is one of my favorites in Christmas movies. It’s the craziness of Black Friday shopping set to happy Christmas music. The perfect visual irony of the madness that is the busiest shopping day of the year. It also sets the tone for the rest of the film. Crazy things are going to happen, but there will always be an air of ridiculousness. Things get crazy pretty quick and the Monster in the House begins.
The production of the film is also great. The art design of the various monsters are really cool. The gingerbread men are adorable and horrifying simultaneously. The attic contains the most of the monsters and tons of creepiness. Then the elves and Krampus himself are fantastic. He has a scary satyr thing going on and his mannerisms are pretty horrific. Definitely a memorable holiday monster.
If you skipped this film and loved Gremlins then you should totally watch Krampus. It’s a fun holiday horror comedy that will be watching annually. I love when a movie comes out that is definitely going to liven up the holiday season. With the cast, costumes, and premise all working perfectly together, it’s one that you can’t skip.
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