When his dysfunctional family clashes over the holidays, young Max is disillusioned and turns his back on Christmas. This lack of festive spirit unleashed the wrath of Krampus: a demonic force of ancient evil intent on punishing non-believers. All hell breaks loose, forcing them to fight for each other if they hope to survive.
Although there are some amusing moments here and there and a couple of nicely effective scary bits, it is never quite as darkly funny nor as frightening as it would like to be ...
For an example of how not to blend genres, look to Krampus, which fuses horror, comedy and the Christmas feelgood movie into one lumpy festive package.
It has enough personality and ambition that it could easily become an annual tradition for those who prefer "Silent Night, Deadly Night" to "It's a Wonderful Life."
The narrow population of people who sincerely like the holidays but also enjoy making fun of them, and responds well to movie monsters has a new piece of essential seasonal viewing.
The movie sends mixed messages. It's hard, but gooey, too. Trick 'r Treat showed that Dougherty has a mean streak (with wit), but with Krampus, he's clearly been charged with delivering a wide-appeal PG-13 film.
Krampus isn't a nuanced movie in terms of character development, but the film does deliver a few narrative surprises that keep audiences on their toes.
The fact we care at all about the outcome is a testament to the actors, and only the actors. But buried beneath the Christmas clutter is a much better movie.
