Violent Night-2022

Director Tommy Wirkola

Starring David Harbour, John Leguizamo

Scott’s Review #1,355

Reviewed April 9, 2023

Grade: B

Violent Night (2022) isn’t the straight-ahead slasher flick with a holiday theme that I thought it might be. Part magic, part action, and part dark comedy make the film a peculiar yet strangely satisfying experience.

In a warped way, of course.

I’m not sure what director Tommy Wirkola was specifically going for but Violent Night is an entertaining one-hour-and-fifty-two-minute experience. Best watched around the Christmas holidays I watched the film on a cross-country flight from Los Angeles to New York City in April and still enjoyed it.

It’s a cool concept with lots of gore, a ritzy mansion as the main set, and a pleasing interracial element providing diversity. The film is also a strange take on a jovial Christmas message production like a Lifetime television movie.

A lot is going on in Violent Night and it openly patterns itself after Home Alone (1990) which one character has just watched for the first time.

David Harbour plays a not-so-jolly Santa Clause who guzzles beer in a London pub on Christmas Eve just before he is set to traverse the world distributing toys to children.

Depressed at the state of the world and the overwhelming amount of naughty people on his list Santa arrives in upper-crust Greenwich, Connecticut, and witnesses a team of mercenaries breaking into a wealthy family compound and taking everyone inside hostage.

Led by Scrooge (John Leguizamo) the bad guys dressed as Christmas characters take the family hostage demanding money they know is hidden in the estate. St. Nick must save the day and kick some ass to maintain the spirit of Christmas.

The characters, though mostly over the top, are my favorite part of Violent Night.

The audience is meant to like seven-year-old Trudy (Leah Brady) a darling innocent with interracial parents who are separated. Jason (Alex Hassell) is part of a rich family and his wife, Linda (Alexis Louder) is a kind woman who has her daughter’s best interests at heart.

All Trudy wants for Christmas is her parents back together.

The other characters are played for laughs especially grand dame Gertrude, deliciously played by Beverly D’Angelo. She’s terrific as the queen rich bitch whose family kisses her ass at every turn hoping to keep in her good graces.

Leguizamo pairs well against Harbour’s Santa who is effective as the beefy and boozy man. He is a good fellow but has lost his belief in the magic of Christmas. The relationship between Santa and Trudy also works well.

A couple of belly chuckles exist which is always a good thing. As Santa takes off on his reindeer-led sleigh to deliver toys he promptly vomits on the pub bartender’s head. Soaked with barf she proudly exclaims ‘He is Santa!’

Violent Night is good fun though severely unrealistic. The film gets a bit too hammy towards the conclusion when the bad guys get their comeuppance on the spacious mansion’s snowy exterior. One character’s decision to burn money to keep warm is too far-fetched and the villains quickly disintegrate into caricatures.

The happily ever after conclusion and the resurrection of a character are underwhelming and worthy of a Hallmark television movie send-off.

The Connecticut mansion is a cool set and the trimmings of Christmas make the set flourish with strong design. The plentiful rooms and secret attics are fun to watch.

I’ve never seen the film Bad Santa (2003) but from what I know of it Violent Night (2022) seems on par. Be forewarned, the ‘violent’ in the title is true to form and the violence is fast and furious at times with a snug message wrapped within.