Violent Night – REVIEW
Image: Violent Night. Image: film still
Moviegoers be warned – this is not conventional family viewing. It’s best described as an action-packed Christmas black comedy, but there’s no Christmas cheer in this ‘holiday’ movie which is graphically violent and has a body count higher than any Arnold Schwarzenegger cinematic offering.
Tis the season to be jolly but when a paramilitary group breaks into the home of a wealthy but dysfunctional family on Christmas eve it’s up to Santa Claus, who happens to be delivering presents, to step in and save the family from the twisted mind of Scrooge, the villainous intruder who will stop at nothing to benefit from the monetary rewards inside the family’s vault.
After what can only be declared as the most disgusting and visually offensive opening scene in any Christmas feature, audiences should quickly conclude that this is the style of movie that cinema-goers will either love or hate – there’s no in-between.
Elements in the story remind of Bruce Willis’s Die Hard, which was also set on Christmas eve and Home Alone, as the young hostage escapes and sets similar, but more deadly booby traps around the mansion after announcing she had watched the film.
This is an absolutely crude but hilarious fun filled movie which should also have audiences cringing at the ‘extremely colourful’ and distasteful language.
Laughter turns into gasps of horror as the slaughter escalates to the barbaric and visually off-putting finale. Nothing is left to the imagination in this blood fest as body parts literally ‘fly at ya’ from the screen.
Stranger Things star David Harbour is perfectly cast as Santa Claus and Beverly D’Angelo is a laugh as one of the hostages.
Violent Night is ultimately a well-made but trashy movie that may fail to find an audience. Since Santa Claus is in the movie adults may believe it’s a kid’s Christmas flick and since the word ‘Violent’ is in the title, families will stay away – and so they should.
Get ready for a Christmas movie like no other and don’t be surprised if you find yourself singing ‘violent night, gory night’ long after leaving the cinema!
★★★
In Cinemas December 1
