This is one of the granddaddies of controversial film. Silent Night, Deadly Night was panned so hardly by critics that it actually caused an uproar over horror flicks. Their argument being, Santa is a wholesome figure that is highly respected by children all over the world and shouldn't be portrayed in such a negative light. Sure, the movie is hard to sit through. It's boring and crass. It hits all the area's it should. Unfortunately it falls short of being terrifying and ends up being a joke.
The plot of the movie revolves around a fragile child that watched his parents get mutilated by a psychopath in a Santa costume. Needless to say, he doesn't grow up just right. He spends his youth in a Catholic orphanage where, of course, he is humiliated and harassed by the staff. Aside from one of the nuns who befriends him. Anyway, later in life he gets a job at a general store. When Christmas comes along he gets pushed to the edge and snaps going out in a Santa-clad Slasher Fest!
Obviously the filmmakers Ira R Barmak, Michael Hickey, and Charles E. Sellier, Jr. knew they had a turd. They had to do something to get people to watch it. So why not just make sure you have enough soft-core sex to get you through it. The movie is filled to the brim with over the clock sex scenes followed by the predictable brutal murders. Don't get me wrong this movie has tons of blood and gore. It's just boring and falls by the wayside when your looking for something good to watch.
Can't wait for the next one!
- This film was known as "Slayride" throughout its production. Tri-Star decided to change the title to "Silent Night, Deadly Night" at the last minute.
- Opened on the same weekend as A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), and briefly out-grossed the latter by around $161,800 before profits fell about 45% by the second weekend.
- The ax that gets embedded in the wall Linnea Quigley is leaning against was real.
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