Douce nuit, sanglante nuit

It isn't hard to see why this movie offended so many people. I mean, it's a slasher movie about CHRISTMAS, and it actually has SANTA as the killer. However, I feel the movie deals with an interesting question. What if you suffered some traumatic event right at Christmas, and the event was somehow bound up with one of the major icons of the holiday? This is what happens to 5-year-old William, who, on Christmas Eve, sees his mother raped and both parents murdered by a street thug dressed as Santa Claus -- right after his semi-senile grandfather tells him that Santa Clause punishes those who are naughty. I think the first part of this movie does an effective job of showing the preadolescent William's struggle to deal with this event as he is raised in a Catholic orphanage and brought face to face with Christmas every year.

I was particularly impressed with the portrayal of the Mother Superior. Although she was most definitely from the Old School of discipline, beating children, locking them in closets for extended periods, and such, I somehow was able to believe she was sincerely trying to do the right thing and cared about the children -- that she was not simply a sadistic hag. There was also an interesting conflict between her and a younger nun, who believed in gentler, more progressive methods.

Alas, the whole thing turns rather formulaic when William puts on the Santa suit and goes on his killing spree. So, as a serious exploration of the question we started with, it falls very short of what it could be. As a slasher movie, though, it's definitely above average.

I enjoyed this film alot. I'm a horror nut and I love 80's slasher movies..so no its not for everybody...but for those who do like 80's slashers you should really check this out. The story is good, it sounds cheesy with santa being a killer, but the back story is very well done, the character development is great, the music works, and it has one of the coolest death scenes in a movie ever....(antlers) Sure, here and there it can be cheesy-PUNISH!- but it still is very watchable and I recommend it to any horror fan around the holidays.

In 1971, on the Christmas Eve, a family heads to a nursing home to visit the catatonic grandfather of the 5-year-old Billy and the baby Ricky. While his parents go with the baby to discuss the treatment with the doctor in the office, Billy is left alone with grandpa. Out of the blue, he awakens and tells Billy to be afraid of Santa Claus since he punishes who is naughty. While driving back home, a killer posing of Santa Claus lures Billy's father that pull over his car on the road and Billy witnesses the killer murdering his parents. A few years later, Billy and his brother are raised in an orphanage run by the tyrannical Mother Superior (Lilyan Chauvin) that believes that punishment is the better way to educate children. Sister Margaret (Gilmer McCormick) feels that Billy needs psychological support but the Mother Superior does not agree. In 1984, when Billy (Robert Brian Wilson) turns 18 years old, Sister Margaret finds a job in a toy store for Billy. On the Christmas Eve, Billy´s chief Mr. Sims (Britt Leach) asks Billy to replace the employee that plays Santa Claus for the clients and their children since he is injured. The Santa suit associated to alcoholic drink trigger his insanity and Billy begins his murder rampage punishing naughty people.

"Silent Night, Deadly Night" is a bold 1984 horror movie that challenges the Christmas symbol of Santa Claus. The scene on the beginning of the feature with Billy witnessing the murder of his parents is also very brutal and cruel. The deaths and the special effects are original and do not disappoint fans of slaher genre. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Natal Sangrento" ("Bloody Christmas")

This killer Santa movie got quite the infamous reputation upon its release due to excessive violence. The film differs from a lot of slasher films in that it spends half of its running time showing the back story of the killer, as we watch him endure a parade of horrors from childhood through his teenage years. In the end, it leaves him mentally unbalanced, with a particularly skewed vision of who Santa Claus is and what he's supposed to do.

Once he dons the Santa suit and goes on his killing spree, the film drops any attempt at story as we watch him move from one scenario to the next, killing those he encounters, or as he thinks of it, "punishing the naughty." It's all pretty dopey, but the lead (Robert Brian Wilson) gives it his all, and some of the gore effects are memorable. Also with Charles Dierkop, Tara Buckman, and scream queen Linnea Quigley. Followed by several sequels, and remade in 2012.

Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)

*** (out of 4)

Low-budget slasher is without question one of the most controversial of the "Golden Age" of the genre. A young boy sees his mom and dad viciously murdered by a man in a Santa suit, which of course traumatizes him. After years in an abusive orphanage, the boy grows up and one Christmas Eve his job requires him to put on the red suit. He flips out and goes on a killing spree. SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT is a fine little movie that manages to do quite a bit with its very limited budget. There are some very obvious flaws including some questionable script moments, some really bad acting and some at times weak direction but there are also some very effective moments. The opening of the film has always been rather creepy in a low-budget way and especially the early scenes with grandpa. I'm sure every kid remembers being young and having some old person creep them out and the film perfectly shows this. The opening murders of the parents are also quite effective when seen through the eyes of a kid. The first half of the film really isn't all that violent because it's building up the trauma of the main character so that he has a reason to snap later in the picture. This here is something not too many slashers tried and while it doesn't work perfectly due to the screenplay, it's at least a good shot. Once the death scenes start up we get quite a few memorable ones, which of course are best seen in their uncut glory. There's the infamous reindeer sequence plus several rather over-the-top but effective scenes at the toy store. Fans of the red stuff are going to get quite a bit of it here even though it's certainly not the most graphic film out there. There's also plenty of gratuitous nudity including some great shots of a young Linnea Quigley. Again, the performances are all pretty bad and this takes away from some of the elements that the story is trying to tell. Still, the low-budget actually adds a certain atmosphere to the picture that it wouldn't have had with more money and a more talented cast. SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT is certainly a very flawed film but it remains an entertaining slasher.