Director – Steven C. Miller (Under the Bed, Scream of the Banshee)
Starring – Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork Orange, Suck), Jaime King (Sin City, My Bloody Valentine ’09), and Donal Logue (Blade, Ghost Rider)
Release Date – 2012
Rating – 4/5
Tagline(s) – “He Knows Who’s Been Naughty” and “You Better Watch Out”
Unlike most people, I often meet remakes with an open mind and a bit of excitement. People fail to realize that many of our favorite movies are far from perfect. In fact, I have yet to come across a film that I find to be perfect. I have seen many of my favorite films get the remake treatment but I never once bitched or complained. Sure, I often thought that it would never be as good as the original but I was still excited to see where the story went.
However, I do complain when I see a director I normally do not like handle the remake. That brings me to Steven C. Miller’s remake of Silent Night, Deadly Night that was simply titled Silent Night. I new I would watch this remake eventually but because Miller was at the wheel I never had the desire.
I had seen his film Automation Transfusion and was not impressed with it. I held off watching his films but was persuaded into watching his recent endeavor, Under the Bed. Under the Bed was not amazing but it did keep my attention so I decided to give in and finally watch Silent Night.
**Spoiler Alert**The film follows Deputy Bradimore (King) and Sheriff Cooper (McDowell) as they investigate a series of murders that plague their small town on Christmas Eve. The two discover that it is a maniac sporting a Santa suit and offing those he feels have been naughty.
As they frantically search for the homicidal Santa they discover that finding the right one will be a problem as the sleepy town prepares to celebrate Christmas. As they exhaust all their resources to apprehend the yuletide madman they quickly discover that it is a foe that has spread bloodshed across the town before and this time he will exact revenge on those that stopped his killing spree before.**Spoiler Alert**
I will admit that I am your typical movie goer. I love horror but if I cross paths with a director who does not deliver I will typically avoid his work. I will not turn my back on him and shit talk his films because I respect all filmmakers. I will still support them but I will more than likely never watch the films of theirs that I buy. After saying that I have to say I am a damn fool for never supporting Miller. As I stated before, the two films I have seen of his did not entertain me enough for me to jump on the bandwagon. However, after seeing this well crafted remake I have to say I am now a fan. He gave the fans of the original a great rendition of a classic slasher in a more modern setting. People complain about remakes because they have been let down time and time again but if they would just be open they could have a damn good time like I did with this one.
The acting in this one is phenomenal. I typically do not like King because she has a hard time making her characters seem real. The only exception to this is Sin City but that is because every character is over the top. That being said, she did a great job in this one and it really shows she learned a lot and matured between My Bloody Valentine and Silent Night. The rest of the cast did a great job as well. The story is oddly more comparable to Christmas Evil than it is SNDN making this movie actually feel like a standalone film than a remake. Looking back and reflecting on the film I can say that it personally felt like the film paid tribute to the original instead of remaking it and that is commendable.
Finally, this film houses an impressive body count and great special effects. Each kill looks great and fits in with the holiday theme which is one of the many reasons people enjoy the original so much. Overall, this is a remake that deserves praise instead of ridicule. I highly recommend it.
