Silent Night, Deadly Night 4K review by Bobby Blakey
Christmas is most noted for its holiday cheer, bright lights and of course the birth of Christ. Even more so in the film industry it has become the perfect time for a great horror flick, most notably the slasher sub-genre. In 1984 the cult classic Silent Night, Deadly Night premiered to much controversy and went on to spawn multiple sequels and a remake. Now Scream Factory is bringing the horror classic to 4K for the first time ever.
Silent Night, Deadly Night follows the heartwarming holiday story of little Billy Chapman, who was traumatized by his parents' Christmas Eve murder, then brutalized by sadistic orphanage nuns. But when grown-up Billy dons a Santa suit and goes on a yuletide rampage to "punish the naughty," no one can stop him ... not even your angry city council!
I love slasher flicks, but when they add any kind of holiday theme to it they just tend to be better. This classic film isn’t what I would classify as a great film but offers up more than a lot of them do in the way of storytelling even if it is silly most of the time. I always loved that this film gave us time to grow with Billy in all the crazy things that leads to his eventual mental break and who can blame him. Sure, the performances aren’t all that great at times, but it checks all the boxes in what we love about the genre and delivers what you hope.
The films of this time always went all in and this one fuels the 80s nostalgia with the awesome techno sound music of horror films of the time and the always over the top great camera work that reminds you of its greatness. The whole idea of the back story being just a crazy guy causing this one incident that fuels the nonstop barrage of bad luck for Billy and his brother Ricky is the perfect yet simple set up that doesn’t need anything more. It’s essentially PTSD and you can fully
understand it while still seeing the craziness of it all.
Outside of the opening sequence it takes a while for the killing to start and while I always have fun with the gore fueled fun, it helps the film seem like more than it is. Have no fear they make sure to get some fun kills in there once it begins with my all-time favorite being the snow sled decapitation. They are often over the top and ridiculous, but that is what makes them so much fun right up until the end.
To wrap it all up is the perfect final moment that reminds you that the fun is just beginning and the perfect set-up for another film in a new direction. We did in fact get numerous sequels that have become cult classics for various reasons as well, but nothing matches this well crafted if not dated first entry.
This new 4K version looks fantastic, enhancing the older video quality without losing the grainy perfection that feeds into the classic nature of the film’s legacy. As if that wasn’t enough it is jam packed with gifts of old and new bonus content including trailers, commentaries, interviews, radio spots and so much more as well as a limited-edition slipcover with the first pressing for those on the nice list.
Get into the holiday spirit and grab your copy of the Silent Night, Deadly Night 40th Anniversary Edition 4K when it appears under the tree on December 12th from Scream Factory.
For more information or to order your copy head over to www.shoutfactory.com