Huge update, so I'm going to break it into a few posts.



8/10 - Sex, drugs, and rock & roll define Fast Times at Ridgemont High which highlights sex-obsessed, druggy, Van Halen fans. A classic of 1980s teen comedy, director Amy Heckerling manages to craft a terrific teen film in her directorial debut. Given her later struggles as a director, aside from Clueless, it is clear she is most adept when handling female protagonists. Fast Times at Ridgemont High really highlights this with some truly terrific females characters, as well as some good supporting male characters. All-in-all, the film is a funny, authentic, and loose look at teenagers in the 1980s and, really, any decade. With good performances all around, Fast Times at Ridgemont High remains a classic of the coming of age genre.

Featuring an ensemble cast led by Jennifer Jason Leigh as Stacy Hamilton (kind of), Fast Times at Ridgemont High's greatest accomplishment is its authentic characters. Coaxed into believing sex is all that matters, Stacy begins toying around with the idea until an abortion, Stacy is the typical high school girl. Immature and unsure of what she wants, she assumes she wants what her closest friend claims to want as well. That is until she meets Mark Ratner (Brian Backer). Hilariously awkward, Mark is really my spirit animal. In particular, the scene where he is about to close the deal with Stacy after their first date and they wind up looking at a photo album instead. This moment, though it has never happened to me, really spoke to me on a personal level. Mark is awkward, yet a good person. Though Stacy first overlooks him even though she does find him attractive, she comes to see how great he could be. This is not a classic "nice guy" scenario where he is just nice to her in the hopes she will begin to look him. Rather, there is a mutual attraction from the beginning, highlighting just how well-written these characters are, even for 1982. This is not a classic creepy Hollywood romance. Instead, it is authentic and realistic.

Stacy's best friend Linda Barrett (Phoebe Cates) is equally well-written. Nailing the girl who believes she is wise beyond her years, Linda acts as though she is a sexual professional while speaking about her mysterious fiance in Chicago. Along the way, she convinces Stacy to think the same way that she does. In reality, odds are that Linda does not actually have sex with anybody, even if she does believe herself to be a mature adult. There is always one of these kind of people in high school and Linda really embodies this personality. On the flip side, we have Mike Damone (Robert Romanus) who believes himself to be a ladies man. In reality, he is incredibly inexperienced and does not know what to do at all when it comes to women. Similarly to Linda, Mike believes himself to be incredibly mature, even if he still has a lot of growing up to do.

These are just tidbits of the terrific characters in the film who are all incredibly authentic, while also very well acted. In particular, Sean Penn shines as Jeff Spicoli, the stoned slacker. Always disconnected, confused, and stoned, Penn really nails the character and how laid back the "druggy" of the school always ends up being. Really, the way in which the film manages to develop its wide array of characters and make them all incredibly authentic is very impressive. As one watches the film, there are numerous moments where you can sit back and point to people these characters remind you of. This is really Heckerling and writer Cameron Crowe's greatest accomplishment here: authenticity. With some teenage coming of age movie cliches under its belt, the film manages to overcome them with great authenticity.

Largely a stream of consciousness style film, Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a very funny, incredibly realistic, and fast paced coming of age film. With good performances all around, the film is both incredibly enjoyable and insightful as to the obsession with sex possessed by high school students.



8/10 - Joyeux Noel is a film sculpted out of the spirit of Christmas and of unity. A film about highlighting our similarities in the face of so many differences and animosities, Joyeux Noel is a beautiful film celebrating the kinship of humanity. Telling the real life story of the Christmas truces of 1914 in World War I, Joyeux Noel is a film with great scope, as it focuses on the French, British, and German soldiers in equal measure. With good cinematography, gorgeous music, and an infectious Christmas spirit, Joyeux Noel is an undeniably remarkable work by director Christian Carion.

Blending bloodshed with tears, Joyeux Noel's great breadth really both elevates and harms the film. By showcasing the stories of all three sides and their similarities and all of the elements that make them human, the film expertly creates sympathy on all sides. When the bureaucracy shows up to condemn the actions, both in a religious and war sense, it leaves the audience feeling angered. Yet, it does nothing to undo the brotherhood on display beforehand. From shots of the three troops in their own trenches to the three sides meeting in no man's land to celebrate Christmas, the film is well-served by treating all sides equally. There is no bad, only good. In juxtaposition to the words of their superiors, the soldiers at battle know the truth: there is more that unites us than divides. For this, Joyeux Noel is a phenomenal work that serves up a striking and moving message to humanity: drop your arms and join together, forgetting our petty differences, and unite under one umbrella. This message is not restricted to religion either, though it does heavily depict Catholicism. As shown, the Catholic Church rebuked the priest who conducted the Christmas mass for the soldiers. Thus, religion is like nationality. It is merely something that serves to divide us. It is only when we are truly human with no barriers - such as in joining together to celebrate Christmas or burying our dead - do we find unity with one another.

However, all of this said, its breadth hurts it in the character development department. With so much going on, names get lost in the shuffle and stories blend together. While the stories are all moving and serve to further unite the characters, it feel all too much for two hours. That said, this is a nitpicky concern, given the power of the togetherness in the film. In fact, it could be argued that by giving little attention to character development, the film is aiming to create a sense of realism. Essentially, we know as much about these characters as they reveal to the opposing sides. By the end, this is numerous and reveals a lot about who they are. However, it is only very little information, but it information with great impact that drives home the point that these are humans with lives and wives who, for all intents and purposes, is the exact same as yourself. Thus, we do not really need more character development because it would create an affiliation for certain characters over others when we should instead feel attached to all of them. This is fair and, obviously, I do agree. However, in a longer film, delving further into some stories on each sides would have been a great addition.

However, nothing can match the chills of Anna Sorensen (Diane Kruger) or Private Nicolas Sprink (Benno Furmann) singing for the troops as all sides play the accompanying music. Moving, stirring, and entirely breathtaking to watch, these moments repeatedly gave me chills due to the way in which it truly captures the spirit of Christmas and why this season is the best of the year. One of the few times we all come together, Joyeux Noel is about coming together at all odds. Here, music and a love of God bring the characters together and, even if you hate music or do not believe in God, it is hard to deny the power of the film in these moments.

Though called sentimental by some (and it certainly is), Joyeux Noel is a breathtaking and beautiful work about Christmas and what the season truly means. A film about dropping your arms and differences in order to join one another in celebration of the season, Joyeux Noel is a gorgeous work that is wide in scope, but never loses sight of its main purpose: to bring joy.



4/10 - Okay so this movie is stupid. Like, really stupid. All about Count Dracula needing the body of Frankenstein's monster to give life to his children, Van Helsing is a pure mess of a movie and really off-the-wall. With horrific dialogue and bad effects, this one is just a recipe for disaster. However, its campy inclinations and embracing of its more ludicrous elements by bringing them to their completion is what really makes this one a film packed to the brim with raucous entertainment. That said, the everlasting question of the film is: how bad is life in Transylvania? It is bad enough being neighbors with Dracula. However, to accept that the vampires will kill and eat one or two people every once in a while to sustain themselves as a fact of life and an ideal situation is really terrifying. How bad were things before they struck a deal with Dracula?

Featuring Hugh Jackman as Van Helsing, the famed archenemy of Dracula, the film tells the story of Gabriel Van Helsing having to go to Transylvania in order to kill Dracula. He is to help save the Valerious bloodline, as they will be stuck in purgatory as a result of their failure to kill Dracula, who was one part of their bloodline before he struck a deal with the devil. By the time he arrives, however, only Anna (Kate Beckinsale) is alive. As with all of Beckinsale's more ludicrous roles, Van Helsing is unafraid to utilize her sex appeal with tight clothing, revealing dresses, and tons of ass shots. She is also largely a damsel in distress here finding herself in situations where men must come and save her. However, the one character I did love, other than Van Helsing himself, is Frankenstein's monster (Shuler Hensley). A compassionate figure in this installation, he was created against his will and, yet, now that he is here, all he wants is to live. Highly sympathetic, it is hard to root against the classic monster in this film.

On the flip side, Dracula (Richard Roxburgh) is very easy to root against. Wholly evil, Dracula's large breasted concubines often do his bidding and are truly horrifying to look upon. The special effects on their bat forms are really quite bad and stand out as some of the worst, aside from Mr. Hyde, who is certainly the worst. This said, Dracula himself is well costumed and truly menacing. Roxburg instills him with a stoic deviousness. However, the best part of Dracula is the mythology here. From the ice castle to the missing script to his back story with Van Helsing, it is all very engrossing. With small details sprinkled throughout the film, director Stephen Sommers really does handle the story quite well at times. Though silly and over-the-top, there is a common thread here that binds it all together.

Yet, the film cannot get out of its own way. Not only is the acting horrific by Beckinsale and David Wenham, but so is the script. Deviating and often unfocused, the script is over-written, too long, and far too wordy. Though the story does often exceed these problems, it occurs far too sparingly to ignore the issues with the script. Even worse, the conclusion is embarrassing.

SPOILERS
After killing her as a werewolf, Van Helsing buries Anna. As she is finally reunited with her family, we see a vision of her being reunited with her family in the sky and gravitating towards the light. Yikes.
END SPOILERS

Often really dumb, Van Helsing can also be incredibly fun. Campy, silly, and over-the-top, it is hard to defend the stupidity of the plot, though I really liked the mythology. Unlike other movies of this ilk that came out in the early 2000s such as Underworld, its mythology is its only strength. In Underworld, we had over-the-top, yet solid acting. Solid special effects. And a lot of fun. Here, we get some good fun, but everything else is just so bad it hurts.



7/10 - A largely overlooked neo-noir mystery, Cutter's Way is a solid and compelling film with an okay plot, but very good characters. An acting showcase and a situation in which the characters got most of the writing focus, the plot here slacks and the film drags. However, its actors are so eminently watchable that the film manages to keep you engaged and hooked all the way through, even if its plot is not as mysterious as it would like the audience to believe.

Starring Jeff Bridges as Richard Bone, the film hims with Alex Cutter (John Heard). Bone, after his stops in the middle of an alley, sees a car pull up behind him and then drive off. It is later discovered that this car was dumping a young girl into a trash can and now Bone is prime witness to the crime. It is only later, when at a local festival, that he realizes he recognizes the driver: business man JJ Cord (Stephen Elliott). Though Bone refuses to pursue the case because he cannot be certain, Cutter is far more persistent. A war hero with one eye, one arm, and one leg, Cutter most certainly suffers from PTSD and rides on the adrenaline provided by pursuing the - presumed guilty - Cord. With these two in the helm, Cutter's Way is often captivating as it depicts Bone trying to talk Cutter off the ledge from his own insanity.

However, both characters are often upstaged by Maureen (Lisa Eichhorn), the wife of Alex Cutter. This poor woman is actually very well characterized. Abused, unhappy, yet hoping her husband will overcome his drinking and become who he was before the war, the character garners great sympathy throughout. Eichhorn elegantly brings her to life with a subtle human emotion that sort of shows how much she has internalized and suppressed her pain at this point, as she is simply used to it. This is her life and, though she is unhappy, there is nothing she can envision doing to change her course. This really makes her a tragic figure and adds to the tragedy of the film. Not only does Cutter destroy his own life, but the life of his best friend (Bone) and his wife (Maureen). In many ways, Cutter's Way is a tragic portrayal of the impact war can have on a person.

That said, it is definitely still a murder mystery, as the characters strive to determine whether or not Cord killed the girl. Though it remains unclear to the audience all the way through aside from little pieces, the characters seem certain he is the one. However, a menacing figure in the community, Cord is seen as untouchable and one to fear, not be confronted. However, the film's pacing in this arena is quite slow as much of the time of the film is simply spent exploring the characters lives. This is fine, but it leaves the mystery element on the back burner with no detective work really shown. For a neo-noir, it leaves the film feeling oddly incomplete in this regard and never fulfilling its potential as a crime mystery. If anything, the dead girl is merely tangential to the purpose of the plot and is just an excuse to explore these people. While I loved the characters and the acting, I do wish the film spent more time exploring as they explored the case, not an either or situation.

Overall, Cutter's Way is an often overlooked film, which is unfortunate since it has great actors and great characters. In particular, Heard and Eichhorn are phenomenal here, fully investing themselves into the portrayal of their broken characters. That said, Cutter's Way commitment to its characters is admirable, but it does come at the expense of its plot, which seems hollow and reliant upon the audience merely going along with the conclusions of the characters and not letting us try and piece it together ourselves.


Ran

10/10 - Ran is a masterpiece. Personally, I do not give out perfect ratings often. Every few months, maybe more, a film comes along that stuns me so thoroughly that a rating that is not a perfect score feels like heresy. Ran is that kind of film. From the story to the score to the cinematography to the colors, the film is a lyrical and poetic masterpiece from director Akira Kurosawa. Based on King Lear, Ran depicts the transfer of power from an old Lord to his eldest son, only for him to be subjected to watching his three sons destroy all that he built. A film about chaos of the mind and the world, Ran develops themes of family, respect, honor, nihilism, and postmodernism. An epic of profound scope, delicately brought to life by Kurosawa, Ran is a film that immediately becomes one of my personal favorites.

Depicting the fall of the House of Ichimonji, Ran is an exercise in trusting and respecting those that you what is on their mind, rather than lie to your face but cover it in complimentary words. In this way, Great Lord Hidetora (Tatsuya Nakadai) is doomed to watch his lands fall to ruin after opting to trust those that to lie to him, if only because they bowed before him when they did it. Though the sons will be blamed for fracturing the family, in many ways, Hidetora fractured the family and the family was always doomed to fail. As he had three sons, the power struggle would have continued no matter when Hidetora died. In many ways, this could be described as Ran's way of showing that our actions do not mean anything (nihilism) and everything is pre-determined for us (free-will or lack thereof). This is even mentioned by one character who says to not blame the gods for what occurs because everything has already been determined. Thus, it can certainly be concluded that the Ichimonji were doomed from the start to fracture. However, by trusting his unfaithful sons over his most faithful son because he spoke his mind, Hidetora merely sped up the demise.

Additionally, Ran is an exercise in violence begetting violence. Towards the end, when Hidetora's life is one again struck with tragedy at the hands of his son's violence towards one another, he asks "Is there no justice?" Though his pain is authentic and he is incredibly sympathetic, Hidetora losing his sons to war is justice in its purest form. Throughout the film, we see castles of lords killed by Hidetora. We are introduced to daughters that were witnesses to Hidetora slaughtering their families, only to then be married off to one of Hidetora's sons. For Hidetora to suffer as he made others suffer - by watching his family be destroyed - is justice and demonstrates that you "reap what you sow" and "violence begets violence".

Ran also heavily discusses chaos. In fact, its title translates to "chaos". Yet, the chaos in the film is two-fold: of the mind and of the world. As he family falls apart, Hidetora goes mad. His mind is very literally chaos. Though he has moments of lucidity, his insanity destroys his mind and memory, causing him to forget what his sons look like and forgetting who a faithful servant was. All of these moments are painful to see, in particular with the servant. Faithful from the beginning, Kyoami (Shinnosuke Ikehata) is distraught to see his master forget who he is and the audience certainly feels his pain. The madness of Hidetora, however, is matched by the now war torn region he is surrounded by. With bloodshed, plots for power, and intrafamily conflicts, there is very little chaos and the film reflects this with long, drawn out battle sequences highlighting every element of brutality. Though chaos appears to happen quickly from the outside, it actually comes from very precise and small steps and Ran goes to great lengths to show the slow descent into chaos experienced by the House of Ichimonji. From plotting wives to power hungry siblings, the collapse is hardly a gradual one.

As with many Japanese films, Ran also delves into themes of family, respect, and loyalty. In particular, respect and loyalty are a large element of the film. With long scenes of men showcasing their loyalty by bowing or following their master into battle, Ran develops a constant theme of loyalty. Though some loyal men die, their loyalty is always celebrated, in particular when they do not stay quiet and instead speak their minds. Even if rebuked, they are proven to be right in the end and their original objections were proven to be justified. Had their warnings been headed, the collapse of the Ichimonj would not have happened. As such, Ran could be called a celebration of contrarians. Though they are unpopular figures, the words they speak come from the heart and should be heard clearly, in order to avoid making a fatal error.

Ran is also a very postmodernist film. Essentially, postmodernist theory argues that nothing matters anymore and that God is dead. For Ran, Buddha is dead. Very literally stated to be dead, those who worship Buddha are eventually brutally killed and the film continues to reinforce the belief that it hardly matters what occurs next. Everything is pre-determined for us, thus there is no value in waking up and praying to the gods on a daily basis. In fact, Hidetora is mocked for this action after he first abdicates the throne. Even the final shot further demonstrates how unimportant the entire world is at this point in time. As a blind man drops a picture of Buddha to the ground, he will be unable to find it again, but it hardly matters because Buddha is dead anyways. Even if were once alive, the madness and chaos of the world drove him far away and relegated him to a position in which he just had to watch with disdain and sympathy. In essence, his hands are off the wheel and we are left to drive ourselves off the cliff. The film itself really also is a piece of postmodernist entertainment, further highlighting the lack of originality left in the world. Though I love the film, it is based on two different source materials and its story, themes, and ideas, are hardly original to this single film.

Cinematically, Ran is a masterpiece. In particular, the battle sequences are breathtaking. The siege on the third castle, where Hidetora is holed up, by his eldest two sons Taro (Akira Terao) and Jiro (Jinpachi Nezu) is stunning to view. Largely set to music once it becomes clear that Hidetora's army will not win, the film lyrically floats throughout the battle with a pitch perfect score to match. This oddness and calmness and peace ends violently with a gunshot ringing through the air. The film follows up this scene with a similarly beautiful battle sequence towards the end. With great strategic detail and language, the film sculpts a tremendous battle sequence that is thrilling, precise, and poetic in its movements.

As for the use of color, Kurosawa expertly uses color throughout the film to denote the true intentions of the brothers. Taro, Hidetora's son, is always clothed in yellow. His army also wears yellow as part of its uniform. Often symbolizing courage in countries such as Japan, Taro is actually referred to as a coward, which is a meaning yellow has come to symbolize. However, the yellow in Ran most closely aligns with deceit. As Taro humbly presents himself to his father and asks him not to declare him Lord of the House of Ichimonj, for fear he would be inadequate compared to his father, Hideotora is greatly flattered. However, this was a deceitful action by Taro as he was the first person to betray his father.

Meanwhile, Jiro - Hidetora's middle son - similarly deceives his father by promising to protect him and to work with his brother to preserve the KIngdom. Dressed in red along with his personal army, Jiro's red certainly symbolizes both violence and danger. Wherever Jiro goes, the House of Ichimonj is constantly in danger as he threatens to overtake power and is then manipulated by somebody who wishes the Kingdom great harm.

Finally, Hideotara's young son, Sarubo (Daisuke Ryu) is always seen in blue. Symbolizing faith and truth, Sarubo is Hideotara's most faithful son. However, he is quickly exiled for telling his father that the family is doomed and that the sons will certainly fight. By the end, Hideotara does realize his folly, yet Sarubo's honesty is punished initially. The fact that he is an honest person and faithful to his father is indicated by the use of blue clothing for Sarubo and his army.

A true masterpiece, Ran is a relatively long film, but never slacks, never drags, and never bores. Instead, it constantly impresses with its precise design with regards to mise en scene. The staging, movements, acting, costumes, and production design, are all exquisite and highlight Kurosawa's brilliant attention to detail in all of his works. Expertly depicting the fall of an kingdom in Japan and all of the chaos, nihilism, and pain, that comes from such an occurrence, Ran is a breathtakingly written and shot film that should have each frame of it hung up and displayed in museums across the world.



8/10 - A dream-like whirlwind into a world of drugs, sex, and hip-hop, White Girl is an explosive look at the ramifications of choices and the afflictions faced by youth in America today. Though highly fictionalized, White Girl depicts an absolutely wild last few weeks of summer with doing drugs, dealing drugs, lots and lots of sex, and of course, murder. It is honestly hard to say what White Girl is truly about, other than the choices made by Leah (Morgan Saylor) coming back to her. Though it is her choice as to who to sleep with, choosing to hang around unsavory characters in all walks of life brings unsavory results to her, leaving her to put together the pieces and struggle to cope with her actions.

Starring Morgan Saylor and her nipples as Leah, the film shows her move to inner city Queens with her friend Katie (India Menuez). Two white college girls going to a decidedly liberal school and majoring in liberal arts (how white can one person get?), the duo party hard and often. After moving in, they quickly run out of weed and Leah opts to ask the local drug dealers, led by Blue (Brian Marc) if they can hook her up. What follows is a torrid romance between Blue and Leah, in which Blue plays the role of sympathetic drug dealer. A large well done character, Blue is brought to life by Marc who plays the character in duel fashion. Tough and hard on the outside, Blue melts like butter when around Leah. This is largely highlighted towards the end when he lays on her chest and cries. On the streets, he has a persona - one he opted to showcase to Leah initially - but when he is with her, he is transformed. Though this is a hardly original character, it is hard to deny the phenomenal execution of the character. Not only is he well written by Elizabeth Wood, but brilliantly acted by Marc. Though Saylor is terrific, Marc honestly stole the show.

That said, this is Saylor's show and she owns the screen. Magnetic, manic, and energetic, her portrayal of the ill-fated Leah is both tragic and often painful to watch. Though caring and deeply in love with Blue, she still sleeps around and needs to scrounge up cash to pay off a drug dealer and a lawyer. This proves tough and the film is very classic in this plotting. While White Girl is a very good film, its plot is hardly original and this certainly stands as its greatest weakness. Fortunately, there are characters such as Leah. A strong modern day woman, Leah has no shame from her action and owns them. However, her character's strength and power is no revealed until the end. After a truly traumatic experience, Leah is more reserved and withdrawn than usual. This sequence is tremendously brought to life by Saylor as you can see her struggle to keep the pain internalized and not just collapse on the floor in a pool of tears. It is honestly hard to watch with this element bolstered by Saylor's authenticity in the role.

All of this said, however, White Girl's plot is incredibly weak. Basically a "get rich because I need money now" type of movie, it is incredibly unrealistic with its portrayal of youth. Sure, there is drug use and lots of sex. However, how many young people today can raise their hands and say they found themselves in the situations that Leah did? I venture to say that not many can. However, as a character study, White Girl is undeniably brilliant. To enjoy White Girl, however, you must reserve judgment on its characters. Rather than pigeonhole a character like Leah and ask, "What makes her do these things?" The film most certainly punishes her for these actions, but they are not the point of the film. She is certainly a tragic figure and not be emulated. I am hardly justifying her actions in the film, but Leah is not a nonredeemable character. Instead, she is merely a child who has lost her way and gotten caught up in living life with new found independence. Though its situations are not authentic, this element most certainly does hit home and is realistic. As a senior in college, I have seen my fair share of fellow students fail to cope with adjusting to college life and the freedom that comes as part of the deal. Leah fits this bill and, as such, White Girl is a representation, and is an exaggeration, of these types of young-adults.

Though I expected to hate White Girl and usually hate films so focused on sex, there is something inherently beautiful about this work from debut director Elizabeth Wood. Haunting, tragic, and an excellent portrayal of lost souls who have strayed from the path, White Girl rides on the shoulders of its characters, particularly Leah and Blue. With terrific performances from Morgan Saylor and Brian Marc, White Girl is a modern day tragedy, but one's enjoyment of the film solely depends on whether or not you are able to see these characters as redeemable figures.



6/10 - A Christmas Horror Story of four short stories added to together that jump from story-to-story, rather than focus on going one-by-one. These stories intertwine and take place in the fictional town of Bailey Downs. Sitting high above the town is DJ Dangerous Dan (William Shatner), who is hysterical in the role. Though a mixed bag and the stories jumping between one another does hurt momentum a good bit, A Christmas Horror Story is a generally fun and entertaining horror ride that may not be the best thing I have ever watched, but it is certainly scary and more than worth your time.

The first story concerns three teenagers, Dylan, Ben, and Molly. The local school had a murder the year before in the basement, which was once an old convent. The three go to investigate for what is presumably a news report for a broadcast journalism course. The murders had a particularly religious bend to them with a Biblical quote from the Book of Isaiah proclaiming the birth of Christ written in blood on the wall. A guy and girl were found murdered, with the guy being crucified on the wall. As the night progresses, the three get locked in this section of the school and begin seeing things, namely a girl who had been in the convent, claimed to be a virgin yet pregnant, and died while trying to abort her baby. It turns out in this section that this demon girl wanted somebody to carry her baby for her, no matter the price. Given the quote on the wall, the time of year, the abortion, the persistence, and the bloody eyed Mary statue, I interpreted this baby to be the Antichrist. Given the presence of Krampus, the anti-Santa Claus, in the film, this is hardly far fetched and makes this section of the film make a whole of sense. As it stands, I did enjoy this section actually. Though pretty typical, it was one of my favorites and I was itching to get back to it whenever it cut away.

The second story concerns Police Officer Scott, his wife Kim, and their son Will. A cop at the scene of the crime last year, Scott is still incredibly shaken by what he saw. While on a trip to cut a Christmas tree from the woods, Will is possessed or something by a changeling. Chaos ensues and this section was not that interesting, honestly. At least with the first part, there was a great mystery as to what was happening. Here, it was pretty obvious Will was possessed and that everything was not as it seemed. It just depended on how long it took for Scott and Kim to realize their son was not with them. Overall, it is passable, but simply took too long and was largely quite dull.

The third story comes back to the people in the first story again with one of their friends, Caprice, stuck going on a family trip with her dysfunctional family. A run in with Krampus makes all of their problems come to the surface and also teaches the fundamental lesson of Christmas: Santa may not be real, but the spirit of Christmas is real and is within us all. Similarly, the spirit of Krampus can enter you and cause serious harm. Though not an absolutely stellar section, it does have some touching family moments, as well as moments of sheer terror.

Finally, the last one is set in the North Pole, but actually relates to DJ Dangerous Dan. With the elves turning into zombies, Santa must kill them all before they kill him. The same even goes for Martha Claus ("SAVE....MARTHA!" - Henry Cavill as Clark Kent/Superman, Batman v. Superman). Orchestrated by his archrival Krampus, the ending of this section is a bummer, even if it does make sense. During the parts with DJ Dangerous Dan, it is revealed that there is a hostage situation at the mall. As it turns out, it is just Norman - the meteorologist for Dan's show - thinking that he is Santa with the zombie elves. Thus, this whole section occurs in Norman's head and is really just a dream. Though it has great production design and is a very cool concept, the ending is a let down. That said, it does gel well with the other sections and the ideas about the Christmas/Krampus spirit. However, even with the bad ending, this section is still far and away the most raucous fun presented by this film with good zombie design and then the promised battle between Santa and Krampus.

Overall, A Christmas Horror Story is a fun and diverting film that, while flawed, has some very scary parts and is a largely entertaining film about the Christmas spirit and the birth of Christ.