I've been told that it's inappropriate to watch horror movies during the Christmas holidays. Apparently, this time of year is supposed to be wholesome and family-oriented. I must admit, I've been guilty of thinking this way as well. They released Girl With a Dragon Tattoo last year around Christmas. Can you imagine the family discussion over which film they should go to? "What should we take grandma to see? Oh! How about that film that depicts the sexual degradation of women with a rather tough-to-watch rape scene? Perfect! Grandma will love that!" Yeah, I can see where people are coming from that some films should not be viewed during this season.
Despite certain issues surrounding the idea of viewing horror during Christmas, I think one could make a few exceptions here and there. My goodness, we have an entire sub-genre of horror movies devoted to Christmas! I think the holiday is prime for scares. Christmas is supposed to be sweet, fun, and innocent. Can you imagine anything worse than ruining that with a psychotic Santa? Poor benevolent Santa Claus. Instead of being that nice guy who brings you presents, he's an ax-murderer looking to slaughter scantily-clad women like in Silent Night, Deadly Night.
The most memorable Christmas horror movie from my childhood is without a doubt Gremlins. As an adult, it doesn't scare me as much, but it still offers up quite a bit of nostalgia. The gremlins wrapped in Christmas lights, little adorable Gizmo. The only problem with the film is that Christmas seems to almost be an afterthought. If it weren't for the sight of the lit-up tree, snow, and assorted decorations in the background, I'd never know it was Christmas. The movie's tiny monsters aren't something you'd associate with Christmas frights. For me, Black Christmas is the quintessential Christmas horror. It has the great Christmas boogeyman legend as a means to implicate the holiday itself into the film. It's best to bring the holiday to the forefront and make it part of the story.
I'm not going to list all the Christmas horror films. It isn't hard to find the good ones. Just remember: there's no shame in watching a good scary movie at Christmas.
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