SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT (1984) Young Billy’s crazy grandfather plays mind games with the kid by instilling in him the idea that Santa Claus punishes those who’ve been naughty. This is followed by Billy witnessing the murder of his parents by a scumbag in a Santa outfit, culminating with the boy’s mental collapse years later at a Catholic orphanage—where he festers in a hotbed of sexual frustration and psychopathic tendencies. Come the holiday season, a teenage Billy (Robert Brian Wilson) completely snaps and—with axe in hand—goes on a Christmas Eve killing spree. After bumping off the usual foul-mouthed bullies and horny teens, he heads back to the orphanage to dispatch the strict Mother Superior (Lilyan Chauvin) who reinforced “punishment” methods that helped fuel Billy’s rage. Silent Night, Deadly Night was blasted by critics, and especially parents’ groups, for its negative depiction of Santa as a homicidal maniac. They missed the point, as the movie is really more anti-religion than anything else. I’m perhaps giving the film more credit than it deserves; nonetheless, Silent Night, Deadly Night is a thoroughly entertaining and unabashedly campy Yuletide splatterfest. (Currently not streaming.)
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT PART 2 (1987) Teenage Ricky (Eric Freeman), the younger brother of the Santa Claus killer from Part 1, is locked up in an institution after committing his own string of murders. (This doesn’t come to the surprise of anyone who remembers the climactic stinger of the first movie, where Ricky shouts “Naughty!” after witnessing Big Bro’s demise.) After ruminating about Billy’s massacre (which incorporates 30 minutes of flashback footage) and his own subsequent killing spree, Ricky kills his psychiatrist, dons a Santa outfit, and returns to the family business of slaughtering innocent people. The viewer will most likely not mind since the majority of Ricky’s victims are rapists, loan sharks, and general douchebags. The black humored violence offsets the film’s mean-spiritedness, especially the scene where Ricky kills a loud-mouthed jerk at a theater showing a movie about a killer Santa. Other humorous moments include Ricky returning to his childhood orphanage, the street number of which is 666. On the whole, Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 is a lesser sequel that’s not quite as bad as its reputation suggests. Just don’t expect a Christmas miracle. (Currently streaming on Prime, Roku, Tubi, and Shudder.)
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT 3: BETTER WATCH OUT! (1989) Ricky, the Santa Claus killer from Part 2, has been lying in a coma since being blasted out a window with a shotgun. Laura (Samantha Scully), a young blind woman with extrasensory perception, unknowingly forms a psychic connection with Ricky (Bill Moseley)—the result of a devious neurologist’s obsession with waking the serial killer by abusing Laura’s powers under false pretenses. The doc’s plans work as Ricky awakens and, with knife in hand, follows Laura and her brother to their grandmother’s country house for Christmas. Ricky ditches the Santa gear for a plastic medical bubble he wears on his head, exposing his brain. (In the previous film, Ricky was shot in the gut, not the head, leaving the viewer questioning this bit of flamboyant headgear.) But Silent Night, Deadly Night 3 isn’t written within the realms of logic—by this point in the series, story and continuity are incidental, and the film designed to appeal to the splatter crowd by offering up gory delights. This would explain how Ricky has morphed into a seemingly unstoppable killing machine, punching through doors and able to withstand multiple gunshot wounds. There’s some suspense towards the end, but the killing of too many likable characters makes Better Watch Out! a bummer. The disemboweling of the Evil Doctor is a highlight. (Currently streaming on Tubi.)
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT 4: INITIATION (1990) Intrepid reporter Kim (Neith Hunter) stumbles upon the bizarre death of a woman in downtown Los Angeles, but her male coworkers dismiss the crime as unimportant. So Kim decides to investigate herself, which leads her to bookstore owner Fima (Maud Adams), who slowly initiates Kim into a cult of man-hating, lesbian pagans. At first Kim enjoys her new female cohorts—until she realizes Fima is using her as part of some sacrificial offering to Lilith, the Biblical Adam’s first wife and witch. The writers abandon the Ricky/killer Santa storyline from the previous Silent Night, Deadly Nights and instead focus on a supernatural tale infused with themes not usually found in slasher movies, such as lesbianism and New Age feminism. There’s a character named Ricky (Clint Howard), but it’s unclear whether it’s the same Ricky from Parts 2 and 3. It doesn’t matter much, as this Ricky ends up getting eviscerated and thrown to the curb where a bunch of oversized bugs feast on his innards. None of the film makes a lick of sense, but in its own way Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation works. It’s weird, it’s gross, and it’s never dull. (Currently streaming on Tubi.)
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT 5: THE TOY MAKER (1991) Young Derek (William Thorne) receives a mysterious toy as a Christmas gift, which comes to life and kills the boy’s father. The murderous device seems to be the product of Joe Petto (Mickey Rooney), a local toymaker whose once thriving business is dying, turning the man into an abusive alcoholic. Petto takes most of his anger out on his teenage son, Pino (Brian Bremer). As the story progresses and more people are slaughtered, Petto slips on the proverbial Santa suit, breaks into homes, and unleashes his army of killer toys—leading to the predictable kidnapping of Derek and “revelation” that Pino is a robot, several screws short of sane. Silent Night, Deadly Night 5 doesn’t have any qualms about ripping off Pinocchio. In fact, the majority of the film is done tongue-in-cheek, which would explain the casting of Rooney, who publicly berated the original Silent Night, Deadly Night for its use of Santa as a serial killer. As with the other films in the SNDN series, if you enjoyed one, you’ll most likely enjoy The Toy Maker. All others will give it a wide berth. Director Martin Kitrosser would later become Quentin Tarantino’s script supervisor. (Currently streaming on Tubi and Roku.)
Happy Holidays!!!