Reviewed by Melissa Garza
As my regular readers know, rarely am I a fan of remakes. Of course, there are exceptions. The Hills Have Eyes (2006) for example was superior to the original and House on Haunted Hill (1999) successfully paid homage to the classic all the while bringing something new and horrifying to the table. It is because of movies like those that I’m always hopeful when I hear about a horror remake. After all, those films left me not only impressed but wanting more. Sadly, the sequels to both productions killed that feeling and reminded me of all the pitfalls that horror can easily fall into.
Nothing can anger a horror fan more than a bastardized version of their favorite films. For me, Black Christmas (2006) and The Stepford Wives (2004) have to be the worst of the bunch. Mere thoughts of those movies are enough to piss me off and make me want to scream. The originals are brilliant. The remakes not only lack any intellect but also are void of atmosphere, intrigue, suspense, and good old fashion scares. Though the remake of The Stepford Wives masked itself as a “comedy” it was by far the most insulting piece of trash I’ve seen.
When I first heard of Silent Night, I was torn. Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984) was one of the most controversial horror movies of all time. Due to know-it-all idiots like Siskel and Ebert and censor freaks who had nothing better to do, the movie was banned for quite a while. Those who demanded control over everyone else’s life held issue with Santa Claus being depicted as a murderer. Though, the movie was obviously aimed at a more mature audience, a bunch of crybabies demanded it not be shown – and for a short time, they won.
In the end, horror fans finally got what they wanted and was able to see a psycho Santa kill all those who were naughty…and it was awesome!
When the loosely based remake, Silent Night was released I was skeptical. The cover showed Santa holding a flame-thrower and wearing a mask. It definitely gave the illusion that the production would be a whodunit, which could have been promising. Unfortunately that was just not the case. Though, the film made great effort to direct the viewers’ attention to several “suspects” the conclusion went for an incomprehensible WOW factor rather than a normal suspense payoff. It was a letdown as it is easily realized that the entire movie’s build-up was a very lame red herring. If the ending were clever or fascinating, one could look beyond the wasted invested time. Hell, one could even admire the filmmakers for leading in alternate directions, but sadly there was no more thought put into the suspects than a quick, “hey look over here.”
On the positive side, I love Malcolm McDowell. Typically, you can’t lose with him as he rarely fails to deliver. Whether it be controversial classics like A Clockwork Orange (1971) and Caligula (1979) or fun sci-fi horror-fests like Class of 1999 (1990) and Suing the Devil (2011), McDowell always brings the viewers into his character.
Even in Rob Zombie’s Halloween (2007) when portraying Dr. Loomis, a character made iconic by the late great Donald Pleasence, McDowell held his own. In fact, it wasn’t until Rob Zombie’s awful sequel, that Loomis’s complete 180 made the viewers confused enough to lose interest. Loomis inexplicably went from a respectable doctor who cared deeply for Michael Myers to a money hungry jerk who cared only for himself and his reputation. Shockingly, even with the transition, McDowell was able to be the only salvaging aspect of Halloween II (2009).
Here McDowell portrays Sherriff Cooper who along with Officer Aubrey Bradimore (Jaime King) investigates a series of murders committed by a man dressed like Santa Claus.
Sadly, there is no pace or atmosphere. The movie itself is pretty empty. Though watchable, there are far superior Christmas horror movies out there. Horror fans would be much better off whether opting to watchthe original Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984), Black Christmas (1974), Dead End (2003) or even Child’s Play (1988).
Silent Night (2011) simply lacks in too many areas to be worthwhile. Though there are certain throwbacks that are appreciated, it hardly makes the film worth watching.
Scared Stiff Rating 3/10
