You’re reading the Watching newsletter. Every week, our team will bring TV and movie recommendations right to your inbox. Enjoy the edition below, and look for future newsletters on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Dear Watchers,We hope you are having a wonderful holiday season. If you’d rather skip your umpteenth viewing of “Elf,” our expert in the horror realm, Erik Piepenburg, has a couple of creepy options to check out. See a couple of his picks below, one contemporary and one classic. Then if you’re looking for some more scary options to take you into the new year, head over here. Happy viewing and happy holidays! ‘Christmas Bloody Christmas’ (2022)
Where to watch: Stream “Christmas Bloody Christmas” on Netflix. This movie is about a killer Santa Claus. Sort of: The degenerate Father Christmas in this case is actually a RoboSanta+ (Abraham Benrubi), a towering animatronic figure who comes to life from a toy store display to terrorize a small town with an ax and a fat sack of bloodlust. The film opens on Christmas Eve, as Tori (Riley Dandy) and Robbie (Sam Delich) learn that the escaped RoboSanta+ slaughtered two of their friends. Apparently these cyborg St. Nicks were recalled because their mechanical innards were made of repurposed Department of Defense gadgetry that went haywire. Just when it looks like nothing will stop this Santa’s Yuletide massacre, Tori takes up arms and saves Christmas. (Maybe.) Written and directed by Joe Begos (“VFW”), this is a good-time, lowbrow, low-budget mash-up of “Willy’s Wonderland” and a Lifetime holiday rom-com written by Lucifer. The gore effects are scrappy and the butchering outrageous, especially when the camera takes RoboSanta+’s imposing POV. ‘Black Christmas’ (1974)
Where to watch: Stream “Black Christmas” on Amazon Prime Video or Tubi. The ne plus ultra of Christmas horror is Bob Clark’s proto-slasher about a maniac who slaughters his way through a sorority house over the holidays. The stellar cast includes Margot Kidder and Andrea Martin as two young victims and Keir Dullea as a toxic boyfriend. The great Olivia Hussey stars as the troubled but fearless final girl, one of the first and finest in horror. The film also stands out for a frank subplot about abortion — it came out the year after the Roe v. Wade decision — and for narrative touches (phone calls from the killer, extended silence) that still feel familiar but fresh.
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