made with
sorry for the mistakes
Krampus
It could also be called "Christmas pissed off", even if there is no
trace of the guy with the belly and white beard. Then we are in the
night of St. Nicholas and the one who gets angry is Krampus, the evil
spirit servant of St. Nicholas. A demonic figure very present in the
folklore of Trentino, Friuli, Bavaria, Austria and Slovenia, so deeply
felt, that during the parade of San Nicola, some people, dressed as
demons, go hunting for bad children or bad in general, chasing them and
"Whipping them".
It is strange that a European figure has ended up in an American horror
movie. Apparently the director and above all screenwriter Michael
Dougherty had been looking for an idea for a Christmas horror for some
time and came across the figure of Krampus (at least according to
Wikipedia). We have to say, fortunately, that he had this idea and
found his monster in this figure. Because this film is a delightful
horror with some comedy moments that is inspired by old films, with a
particular preference for those of the eighties (see the "Gremlins").
A work that apart from a slightly slow start, gives the viewer the
right amount of horror, hitting, as mentioned, Christmas and the
family. Not a lot of blood circulates but Dougherty guesses every move
to scare the viewer, giving him a film (starting apart as mentioned)
with a nice pace and above all with a surprise ending.
Traditions and celebrations therefore end in "Krampus" with a large
family that meet for the classic exchange of gifts. Max and Beth with
their parents Sarah and Tom (the latter two played by Toni Collette,
who we remember for “The Sixth Sense” and by Adam Scott,
seen among other things in “Big Little Lies”). The other
family unit, the host one, is made up of Howard played by David
Koechner, another well-known name in TV series and films, a stiff
American Republican, his wife Linda Allison Tolman, and his two
daughters. We have also Aunt Dorothy (Conchata Ferrell, who recently
died) and Tom's mother, the German Omi (played by Austrian Krista
Stadler) who also acts as a link with Krampus.
With these long introductions, we have Tom who believes in Santa Claus
and the cousins who mock him repeatedly. Tired of being made fun of,
Tom, tears up his letter. The Krampus doesn’t like this.
The family finds the house submerged by snow and above all full of
strange creatures that want their blood, including haunted toys,
murderous cookies and Christmas lights used as weapons.
Special effects used wisely and a lively direction lead us pleasantly
to a surprising ending, which seals the success of the film.