In the days after Halloween comes Krampus: The Reckoning, a Christmas-themed tale of terror where the seminal beast of Germanic lore invades America. When this dissimulation of a creature is being presented in a culture that does not normally celebrate him, to accept what this monster represents does need some explaining. Very little is offered in the film until it’s too late. Anyone interested in this movie is advised to do a little research first. Yes, the Krampus does have a small following in this country, but does everyone know he’s part of a movement of anti-Christmas celebrations? They most likely do not.
While this devilish creature’s purpose is to either beat the naughtiness out of children or be dragged to some fire pit for punishment so they can become good, very little of this fact is revealed in the film. When Zoe (Amelia Haberman) has this spirit protecting her, some viewers may wonder if she’s supposed to be a good witch or bad one?
After discovery of several burned corpses following this young girl’s wake as she changes from foster parents to another, Dr. Rachel Steward (Monica Engesser) tries to investigate. In what she discovers offers some answers but the reveals are never truly satisfying. There’s some effective moments of unease as revelations come into being, but in a film that’s more about presenting the gore than paying respect to the celebration, there’s more satisfying attachment when the movie ends.
This darker representation of the Santa-figure is moreorless properly represented but a lot of thought is needed after the film to understand what’s going on. As for staring at the beast, the make-up and digital design could have been better. He did not look menacing at all. This entity deserves a H.R. Giger treatment. Instead, most of the publicity images offered presents him as a SyFy feature monster of the week.
Hopefully the other Krampus film, which is a horror-comedy due December 4th, can do a better job at providing some chills. This movie has the feel of simply being rushed to Nov 3rd release to keep up with the Halloween demand. There’s nothing to be scared here. Move along
