Unholy Night is a new Christmas horror-comedy in which a man's long-dead grandmother comes back on Christmas Eve and goes on a murderous rampage. It arrives on Shudder on 4 December, the same day it opens in select cinemas, and the trailer has just landed.
That is, I think we can all agree, the correct way to ruin a family gathering.
What is Unholy Night about?
The setup is gloriously simple. It is a traditional family Christmas Eve. Gino's grandmother, who has been dead for some time, returns and starts killing people. Gino also has his ex turning up, which is awkward enough without the undead, and the pair have to dodge his other dead Italian relatives, who are now wandering around the neighbourhood. Their job for the night is to work out how to get rid of these festive revenants and survive dinner.
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It is directed and written by Michael Gabriele, and it is his first feature. The film is released by Game Theory Films, who put out the trailer. According to Dread Central, which first flagged it to me, the trailer has the silliness and the over-the-top bloodshed of an Evil Dead film, only with tinsel. You can read their trailer report on Dread Central for their take and the trailer itself.
If you have never seen Evil Dead, the comparison is a shorthand for a particular kind of horror. Sam Raimi's original films mix real gore with slapstick, so you are never sure whether to scream or laugh, and the answer is usually both. A film that wants to sit in that tradition has promised a lot. A grandmother as the villain is a good start, though. Nobody is more frightening when she has decided you are not eating enough.
Who is in the cast?
Marc Bendavid and Shailene Garnett lead. Bendavid has been in Dark Matter and Reacher, and Garnett in Fire Country and Diggstown. The supporting cast has some very recognisable faces for horror and prestige TV fans: Al Sapienza, best known from The Sopranos and House of Cards, plus Ron Lea, Cristina Rosato, Jaqueline Robbins and Joe Pingue, whose credits include Station Eleven and Star Trek: Section 31.
A cast with a Sopranos veteran in it, playing into a big Italian family, tells me the film understands that a family dinner is already half a horror film before anybody dies.
It has also had a festival outing. Dread Central's Chad Collins reviewed it at Fantasia this year and gave it three and a half stars, finding it both heartfelt and properly gory. I have not seen it yet, so I will not pretend to a verdict. That mix of soft and nasty is exactly what I want from a Christmas horror, though.
Where can you watch it?
The release date is 4 December. Dread Central reports a cinema release in select Canadian theatres, and that is the only theatrical run named in their piece, so if you are elsewhere, do not go hunting for a local screening yet. The same day, the film streams on Shudder. For most of us, that is the sofa option, and the sofa is where I will be.
I should be careful here. Whether a cinema near you gets it is something I cannot promise, and I would rather say so than send you out in the cold for nothing.
What is Shudder?
Shudder is a streaming service built entirely around horror, thrillers and the supernatural. It is run by AMC Networks, and it works like any other subscription service: you sign up, you pay monthly or yearly, and you watch what is on the shelf. The difference is that the shelf is all horror. It carries classics, cult favourites, international films and its own originals, and it has a habit of picking up festival films like this one and giving them a streaming home quickly.
It has been available in several countries, including the UK and the US, but availability can change, so check the Shudder site for your own region before planning your night around it. I have not put a price here because those move around and vary by country.
It is also a good place for festive horror. Shudder has been snapping up Christmas-flavoured films lately, which suits those of us who think a mince pie and a murder belong in the same evening.
Is it a cosy watch?
That depends on how you take your cosy. If you need a blanket, a mug and a film that wants you to have a good time, then a horror-comedy about a gran with murderous intent is more cosy than a bleak one. Laughing and flinching in the same breath is a very particular pleasure, and the festive setting means the room already has fairy lights on.
The one thing I will say is that comedy horror does not suit every mood. Some nights I want dread, and some nights I want a woman with a rolling pin who will not stay dead. Know which kind of night you are having before you press play.
So here is my question for you. Which relative would you least want to see coming back on Christmas Eve? Tell me yours in the comments, and I will see you on 4 December with the lights low.
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