Papai Noel Não é Real

Santa Isn't Real (2023) is a film I recently watched on Tubi. The story follows a young woman who wakes up from a coma after being attacked by someone dressed as Santa on Christmas night-a tragedy that left her family dead. As she tries to move on by spending her first holiday out of the hospital with friends, it quickly becomes clear that the killer may have returned.

Written and directed by Zac Locke (Float), the film stars Kaya Coleman (Beyond Black Beauty), Scarlett Sperduto (Wanted), Cissy Ly (Sad Eyes), and David Mitchum Brown (At War with Love).

This is yet another low-budget film that feels every bit of its budget. The writing and acting are painfully weak, with circumstances and dialogue that come across as completely inauthentic. The storyline is overly simplistic, predictable, and capped with a twist that's easy to see coming. While the kills are passable at best, they don't elevate the film, though the "pillow princess" kill does stand out as the highlight.

In conclusion, Santa Isn't Real is a disappointing and forgettable addition to the Christmas horror genre. I'd rate it a 3/10 and recommend skipping this one.

Given my love of all things horror, of course I opted to watch the 2023 movie "Santa Isn't Real", as I had the opportunity to do so here in 2025. I had actually never heard about the movie, so I virtually didn't know what I was in for, aside from what sparse information the synopsis provided.

Writer and director Zac Locke didn't exactly piece together a particularly thrilling, riveting or scary storyline. Nay, it was, in fact, rather bland and boring. So I wasn't particularly impressed ith the narrative in the movie, and struggled to keep feigning an interest in it.

Something that definitely worked in favor of the movie was the fact that I wasn't familiar with a single actor or actress on the cast list. I do enjoy watching new and unfamiliar talents on the screen when I watch movies. The acting performances in "Santa Isn't Real" were good.

It was not a movie that made use of a whole lot of special effects. Sure, there were some effects, but not enough to make up for the boring script.

If you enjoy horror movies, do yourself a favor and give "Santa Isn't Real" a wide berth. It just simply isn't worth wasting 76 minutes on.

My rating of writer and director Zac Locke's 2023 movie "Santa Isn't Real" lands on a generous three out of ten stars.

This was such a bad movie, don't waste money on this! Bad acting and bad filming!! It took a long time till something happened, and when something happened it was so bad, real waste of time and money. Recommendation is to not watch it, real bad actors, bad acting and really bad filming. Never watching again!

I've been an avid fan of horror movies for a long time, and Scarlett Sperduto's performances have consistently caught my attention. Since her early days, notably her impressive portrayal as an Angelina double, Scarlett has demonstrated a remarkable ability to adapt and evolve as an actress. It's thrilling to see her transition from roles that stereotypically fit 'younger' actresses to more mature, nuanced characters.

What stands out about Scarlett is her exceptional talent for bringing depth and complexity to her roles. Whether it's her expressive portrayal of emotions or her ability to transform into a different character, she brings a unique authenticity to the screen. This transition to mature roles seems not just a step in her career but a leap into a realm where her skills can truly shine.

It's clear that Scarlett has found her groove. She has settled into a comfort zone that doesn't mean complacency, but a newfound confidence in her craft. This comfort, I believe, is her stepping stone to taking on more challenging and prominent lead roles. In particular, given my love for horror films, I can't help but envision Scarlett taking the genre by storm with lead roles that exploit her range and intensity.

The film industry, especially the horror genre, needs talents like Scarlett Sperduto. Her evolution from 'younger' roles to commanding lead roles is not just a testament to her growth as an actress but also serves as an inspiration in an industry often pigeonholed by typecasting. Scarlett's continued ascent in challenging lead roles could pave the way for a more dynamic and diverse representation in Hollywood, and I, for one, am excited to see where her talent takes her next.

I fully expected this to be substantially worse than it actually is, considering it is more or less a D-grade film...and the premise is kind of weak.

Don't get me wrong...it's still pretty bad.

Just not AS bas as I expected it to be.

The story here, revolves around a woman named Nikki, who ends up in a coma, after being attacked by Santa on Christmas Eve, in a way that made it look like she tried to commit suicide.

When she wakes up from her coma- nearly a year later- no one believes her, when she tries to tell them what actually happened.

That is...until he comes back to attack her and her friends, while they are held up in a remote cabin in the woods.

Mediocre acting aside.

The main problem it suffers from is, not only, a weak script...but also some really poor set design.

I found it really hard to get over how bad the sets were.

They felt so staged.

Which really took away from the ambience of the film.

There's also a major lull after the opening scene.

As the focus shifts to lame relationship drama, prior to the horror kicking back in...which really disturbs the flow of the film.

A good deal of the film attempts to establish lore that argues Santa is Satan...and that it's not logically consistent to believe in Jesus and Satan...but not Santa.

Which isn't exactly good writing.

It probably would have been much better if it didn't take so long to suss this all out...and just got back into the horror.

Because you start to lose interest by the time Satan Santa makes their reappearance.

With what ensues not being quite enough to win you back.

To be frank...the only thing that saves this from being completely unwatchable...is the fact that the production quality is half decent (aforementioned issues aside).

Though, I think it would have benefitted from being a short film.

Instead of forcibly trying to draw it out like they did.

Because it's just too slow, without enough action to justify- or make up for- the lulls.

In their defense, however...they do attempt to give the drama purpose, with a twist.

But you really have to force yourself to stick with it.

Luckily, I went into this with extremely low expectations.

That it somewhat- and somehow- exceeded.

Though, certainly not by much.

Because it is pretty bad.

But at least it's short...because it certainly could have been worse.

2 out of 10.