classicsoncall I can't imagine why, but I don't believe I ever heard of a Krampus before. It's not exactly a brand new holiday season concept, and I'm not a youngster, so I don't know how this anti-Christmas legend snuck by me. In looking up some information on the Krampus, and by association, Krampusnacht, I learned that the demon-like, half-goat of Austrian folklore makes his presence known on December Fifth to punish children who have misbehaved. Since I've never encountered the Christmas Devil myself, I guess I've been doing okay.Well this Christmas movie isn't for the faint of heart. It's a series of four stories told somewhat simultaneously, with a couple of them intertwining before reaching a fatal conclusion. Sort of book-ending the film is good old William Shatner portraying radio jock Dangerous Dan, attempting to lift the spirits of the town of Bailey Downs with good tidings and songs for the holiday season. We didn't get to see much of Bailey Downs, but in my imagination I kind of compared it To Bedford Falls, in keeping with the Christmas tradition.Being a Christmas 'Horror' story, be prepared for a fair share of blood and gore, along with Santa's (George Buza) gallant home-stand against his infected, zombie transforming elves. There's a twist to this story that you may or may not see coming when things spiral out of control to the finale. Let's just say Stormin' Norman the weatherman had a Santa fixation with an axe to grind.If you go for this kind of stuff, the film is kind of entertaining in it's own way. But just like a lot of stories that came out of The Twilight Zone or the Crypt Keeper's vault, there are no repercussions for some of the brutal murders that take place when things eventually have to settle down. What I'm thinking about is how are the survivors of the various stories going to explain things to the authorities when it comes time to clean up all the individual messes. Not supposed to think about that I guess. I think maybe that Krampus has some more work to do.

vegeta3986 I'm one of those people that will usually watch anything as long as Shatner's in it. So when i saw he was in a Christmas horror movie, I knew I had to give it a shot. Reading the synopsis, I knew Shatner wasn't going to be the star focus, but i was okay with that. I thought a Christmas horror story would be a fun idea. And then I actually saw the movie. This story is really 4 in one. Santa with elf zombies, changling kid, krampus against family, and haunted basement. All of this is connected by Shatner who is a radio DJ. And he's the only real saving grace of this film. Hearing Shatner as a mildly drunk Christmas loving radio DJ is amazing. Besides him and perhaps santa, every single character in this thing is annoying. There's seriously no character that I rooted for or even wanted to stay alive. Every single character is a pain in the butt level of annoying. I also have to say. This, this was a chore to get through. I didn't enjoy a single moment of this movie (With the rare exception of the Shatner scenes) When we're introduced to the characters we see them as unlikable jerks, and just because they're put in danger doesn't make them any more likable.Plot points are just kind of....there and quickly forgotten. The endings of most of these wrapups are RIDICULOUS and are at odds with what they're trying to convey. 1. The kid being a changeling story wraps up with the mother going to return the changling to where they took it from in the forest. She meets up with this guy that says "they won't harm you here because they're afraid of me." she sees she's surrounded by a bunch of changlings, and proceeds to shoot the guy and he dies by accident. The changlings, instead of killing her go "oh! okay! here's your son!" Wait.....what? That's the end? no twist? no...'she dies and the kid was already dead'? seriously? this mother character was one of the worst freaking characters! I was actively hoping she WOULD die. the fact that she or the kid DIDN'T die actually dropped this from a 3 to a 2. 2. Okay so with the santa story I was all for it when i was writing this review. Then i saw the ending 'twist'. it completely ruined it. look. you can't have a twist like "oh, of course this guy is really just crazy for no reason and is NOT santa fighting krampus because that makes more sense" when you have KRAMPUS ALREADY IN YOUR MOVIE. It's not far fetched to have him be the villain when he already IS killing people in your movie.3. The krampus family thing had development that lead nowhere. you find out that the son who is a giant asshat is in actuality a sociopath who kills animals, but the mother and father were actually understanding each other and then developing as characters then "poof. dead." thanks for that? It reminds me of the actual Krampus movie. except....you know, even stupider. 4. okay, basement possession baby didn't even have anything to DO with Christmas. That could have literally taken place at any time of the year. The fact that it was Christmas had NOTHING to do with the plot. it almost feels like this was made for a different story but ended up being too short so they tacked it onto this and had the characters say "oh by the way it's Christmas!" a few times during their scenes. These were the most boring of the bunch as 3/4 of the scenes were slow walking with no payoff. Speaking of payoff, with the exception of the santa scenes, none of the deaths were on screen and it looked stupid and cheap. If it weren't for Shatner this movie would get a 1, but god help me, Shatner can make even the worst piece of garbage worth it. So Shatner, I toast you with a wassail. As for the rest of this stupid nonsense, it can go right in the trash bin. 2 out of 10.

cbarrette-42802 I am a huge slasher film fan....but this movie let me down. Mainly because it was so slow to start. The plot was kinda "off" and was off point now and then. I understand the concept....but the movie really just didn't make sense. It bounced around too much!!! At one point you are watching "santa" and the next point you are watching him kill his elves with a staff. maybe I missed it...but why does he start killing them..... ? Little confused. The beginning s very slow.....and confusing...why does the boy become a changling.......what brings it on. ....etc. I like the idea at the end where Santa kills everyone.....but it comes unexpectedly .....like the scene in the elevator.

SnoopyStyle It's Christmas Eve in the small town of Bailey Downs. DJ Dangerous Dan (William Shatner) is pulling a double shift on the radio. Two kids were killed one year ago in the local school. Students Dylan, Ben, and Molly Simon are doing a story on the incident. They get locked in the basement. Scott and Kim Peters go into private property to cut down a Christmas tree. Their son Will gets lost but they eventually find him. However, there is something odd about him. Taylor Bauer takes his family to visit his aunt but she kicks them out. A creature runs across the road and Taylor crashes the car. Meanwhile in the North Pole, Santa is battling with zombie elves.There is some solid horror work being done here. It's somewhat like a loosely connected Twilight Zone anthology. These four horror stories are shown in a back and forth manner. This does mean the first half of the movie is a bit slow with the four stories getting set up. First of all, Shatner's part is not necessary. It's great that Shatner has a day to give to the filmmakers and I'm sure they were restricted with his usage. His pontificating adds nothing to the stories. There is one big connection but that's not necessarily either. There has to be a more compelling way to use his stardom.There is value in all four horror stories. The kids in the basement is a classic jump-scare horror. The changeling is an even older classic horror. The family on the run is solid chase horror. None of these three are completely original but they are all well-made very solid old school horrors.Santa and the elves do stand out. It is something different but also something not fully realized. In addition, it doesn't fit. There is a pretty good twist in the end but that needs better foreshadowing earlier on. This section could probably stand on its own as a separate movie. The other three would work better without this. The special effects and gore effects are generally competent especially for an indie. The acting is solid throughout and the horror is fine.