Krampus
Director: Michael Dougherty
Actors: David Koechner
Release Date: Friday 4th December 2015
Genre(s): Factual, Fantasy, Horror
Running time: 98 minutes
A high concept horror that has aspirations to play like a modern day Gremlins, Krampus feels like a film built around some cool concept designs, but not a lot else.
Casting well, but giving said cast too many tonal curveballs to deliver anything entertaining, Michael Dougherty's film finally gets going in the final third, but by then it's too little, too late.
Adam Scott and Toni Collette are a couple dealing with that age old tradition of family you don't like dropping by the gaff for Christmas. This shower of uncouth visitors are pulled pretty much directly from National Lampoons Christmas Vacation - especially David Koechner's gun-loving hillbilly, who couldnt be any more Randy Quaid if he were Shia LaBeouf in 30 years.
Soon a powerful snow storm hits their upper class suburban area, and things start to go bump in the, er, snow. All is revealed when Grandmother Omi talks about her downright disturbing childhood - the horror coming their way is via a demonic Santa Claus... and some Gingerbread men, but are like the ones from Shrek on molly.
Yea, it sounds kind of fun and the pairing of Scott and Colette is interesting; they're both actors with obvious range who can do comedy and drama and there's a decent budget. The problem is the script; it never blends properly and thus does very little right.
If it was more horror than comedy, at least then you can up the violence and maybe find a cult following. Instead you have a diluted Gremlins wannabe, that hints at something more but never delivers.
Also, that ending will make you wanna kick over a snowman.
