‘Krampus: The Christmas Devil’ Review

Stars: A.J. Leslie, Samantha Hoepfl,Bill Oberst Jr., Michael Mili, Jay Dobyns, Paul Ferm, Andrew Ferrick, Richard Goteri, Angelina Leigh, Darin Foltz | Written and Directed by Jason Hull

Jeremy is a local police officer who has spent most of his life searching for the man who kidnapped his as a child. After children in his town start to go missing he realizes there may be a connection, and the kidnapper could be Krampus, the creature of Christmas legend, who is the brother of Santa Claus and punisher of naughty children; and is known for performing acts of unspeakable evil. The big question is, can Jeremy kill Krampus before even more children are taken?

Not even five minutes into Krampus: The Christmas Devil and I knew I was going to love this movie. Why? Because from the get-go this movie looks and feels exactly like that other slice of classic Christmas horror: Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2. Yes, that cheese-fest sequel that makes many a “so bad it’s good” list. A description which could also describe this movie perfectly.

Badly shot, poor production values, bad acting. A horror fan hates these not (always). And that triumverate of trash certainly works here… Throw in a completely overwrought soundtrack – complete with throbbing 80s synth and hair metal-esque guitar, random naked women (who knew Krampus was a horny Christmas devil?) and piss poor special effects, and you have a slice of holiday horror that is totally mental.. and perfectly bad. Hell, even Santa gets in on the cheesy action – and who knew he was a child-threatening bastard too?

I can’t explain just how bad Krampus: The Christmas Devil is; and just how much I loved it because of that! This film has fight scenes filmed in slow motion – only they’re not slow motion, the cast are just moving slowly. Scenes start and end with overly dramatic music. Scenes end before they’ve even begun, hell a lot of the scenes are completely extraneous to the plot! Then there’s the big plot twist… that Krampus is not the only child-killer in town. And that’s not the only bizarre plot thread thrown into this film for good measure either!

There is one major, legitimate, highlight in this flick. And that’s Bill Oberst Jr. He appears part-way through the film as an escaped child-rapist intent on getting revenge on Jeremy for putting him away 10 years ago. He literally out-acts and out-camps everyone in the film, with a performance that is at once over the top – perfectly matching Krampus: The Christmas Devil‘s  campy nature – and sadistically evil. His role doesn’t last long (just long enough for a hilarious death at the hands of Krampus – “You’ve been naughty!”) but it really is a joy to watch him at work once again.

Definitely one to add to your Christmas movie list, Krampus: The Christmas Devil is released on DVD by High Fliers on November 2nd.