“Silent Night Deadly Night” is a remake of a 1984 horror film that had four sequels. None of them were released in theaters locally, and according to US reviews, probably for good reason. Now comes a renewed adaptation that, even without knowing the original film, manages to deliver an entertaining cinematic experience that will please slasher genre fans. It contains enough surprises to delight the audience.
As in the original film, the new version shows a young boy named Billy witnessing the brutal murder of his parents by a man in a Santa Claus suit. Years later, Billy is in his twenties, embarking on a series of violent killings while wearing a Santa Claus suit.
Like Dexter, he has an inner voice guiding him. The inner voice is a sort of alien entity similar to Venom, only heard and not seen. This inner voice helps him track down bad people and eliminate them in diverse and bloody ways.
Despite being 2025, the original idea of a man dressed as Santa Claus killing people in various ways still feels provocative and offensive to a conservative audience. Especially in an era where conservative values are resurging and across the US there are voices opposing the transformation of Christmas into an inclusive event.
White supremacy rages against events where Santa is not white or the Christmas tree has nontraditional decorations. The presence of these voices appears in the current film, which is not enthusiastic about real-life politics, and the audience gets an incredibly bloody sequence that will be remembered long after viewing.
Unlike other slasher films, the movie handles Billy’s character in an interesting way, likely inspired by Dexter. He becomes human, vulnerable, and understandable. The audience does not want him to be harmed. At his core, he is a good person harming only bad people. There is an unoriginal but sufficient use of his trauma to make him someone we want to survive even though he is a killer.
There is no deep psychological layer, but it is entertaining enough to overlook the simplistic script and relatively flat character writing. Compared to other films in the genre, this remake adapts a lesser-known film, allowing writer/director Mike Nelson to be more daring.
Rohan Campbell is the right actor for Billy Chapman. He appears vulnerable, an ordinary person forced to face an extraordinary situation. He is a good enough actor to provide some depth and multidimensionality to the character.
He is not just a cold-blooded killer but also a person who wants to fall in love and build a home, even if occasionally he must kill bad people to avoid losing control and harming innocents. Alongside him is Ruby Modine as his love interest. She also suffers from a strange personality split and is a fan of true crime shows, making the two complement each other.
“Silent Night Deadly Night” is not a high-quality or genre-defining horror film, but it is certainly a fun horror film that, alongside the varied killings, has a wild plot, a relatable character, and one unforgettable sequence. In the end, the movie entertains and delivers the full experience.