Holiday Horror

Holiday-themed horror films, or Holiday Horror, are a horror subgenre of slasher films and typically involve a psychopathic killer stalking a sequence of victims in a violent manner during Christmas. The murders often are conducted with a bladed tool such as a knife, machete, or axe by someone dressed as Santa Claus, a snowman, an elf, or another Christmas character.

With origins dating back to the 1970s, Holiday Horror films come in short^[1] and long formats, use familiar Christmas themes (tinsel-decorated homes, creepy Christmas music, Santa Claus costume) that serve as a backdrop to terrorize audiences.^[2]

Films

Bob Clark's Black Christmas (1974) is regarded as one of the earliest precursors of Holiday Horror and slasher films.^[3] The plot centers on a group of sorority sisters massacred by a sadistic killer during Christmas break and masterfully uses tension and suspense.^[4]

Other Holiday Horror genre films include the And All Through the House segment of the anthology film Tales from the Crypt (1972), Silent Night, Bloody Night (1974), Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984), Elves (1989), To All a Good Night (1980), Jack Frost (1997), The Gingerdead Man (2005), Krampus (2015), and All Through the House (2015).

References