disclosure: We were invited to a special screening of VIOLENT NIGHT in order to facilitate this review. all opinions are our own. No other compensation was received.
’Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the mansion, everything was calm until Santa came into a hectic hostage situation. David Harbour plays the ageless, realistic Santa Claus, who’s seen it all. In between chimney slides at each house, Santa drowns himself in booze and just delivers presents. It’s the same thing each year for Santa, until he reaches the Lightstone family.
VIOLENT NIGHT begins when the matriarch and head of the family, Gertrude (played by National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation icon, Beverly D’Angelo) enters the scene with a prolific montage of profanity and crude humor while her family waits in the main living room to give her their Christmas presents.
Violent Night – In Theaters December 2
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In walks in the criminal mastermind villain, Jimmy, aka “Mr Scrooge” (played by John Leguizamo). Jimmy has a comical, but typical, lifelong hatred for Christmas as a villain in a Christmas movie. His goal is to take the $300 million locked up in Gertrude Lightstone’s family vault. Candy Cane, Krampus, Sugarplum and Gingerbread work with “Mr. Scrooge” to help take over the estate and secure the money. Knowing that the extraction team is on the way to save the Lightstones, Jimmy is one step ahead of the audience and Gertrude. The dim witted son of Gertrude runs at the sight of the extraction team, only to be killed on sight by the team. Backup is here, but for Mr. Scrooge.
What sets this story in motion is the interaction and friendship that forms between Santa and the granddaughter of Gertrude, Trudy (played flawlessly by Leah Brady). Through a pretend walkie-talkie that her non-believing Dad gives her to distract her, she is able to reach Santa and work with him to help save Christmas. This relationship lifts audiences into a story of believing while Santa Claus goes all “Die Hard meets Michael Myers” to kill and save Trudy’s family from certain death.
Thriller montages of Santa brutally killing every bodyguard in sight bewilder audiences in gory scenes while classic and well-played Christmas music highlights this orechestrial slaughter. Hilariously gruesome and over-exaggerated scenes of violence continue aimlessly as audiences are left in shock and disgust.
It’s a Christmas movie, remember! Clues and predictable moments help tell the story and lead audiences on quite the night before Christmas. The movie culminates with one last battle between Santa himself and Mr. Scrooge. One thing Santa has the clear advantage with is his ability with chimneys.
VIOLENT NIGHT makes it crystal clear that this film is rated R early on with crude and strong language as well as a multitude of sexual innuendos and gruesome blood. Director, Wirkola creates clever but violent ways to stir up the naughtiest of naughty, disastrous plots and a bloody good time with the only saving grace being Trudy (Leah Brady) and Santa (David Harbour) himself.
VIOLENT NIGHT is in theaters, Friday December 2nd. The film is rated R.
Ever since he was young, Matt was enamored and glued to anything Disney. From the movies, to Playhouse Disney, to frequent visits to Walt Disney World. Disney was Matt’s childhood. As he grew up, and his interests went from movie fandom, to park operations fandom, his desire for spread to Disney Parks and his urge to work for Disney. Since then, he has completed numerous Disney College Programs, and is currently a proud Cast Member at his favorite park, EPCOT, having been apart of the opening teams for Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure, Creations Shop, and Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind’s Treasures of Xandar.
