Movie Review: The Nights Before Christmas (2020)
The Nights Before Christmas is a horror film written by Simon Phillips and Paul Tanter and also directed by Paul Tanter. It is a follow-up to the 2017 film Once Upon a Time at Christmas which we reviewed as well. It’s about a psychopathic man in a Santa Claus suit, and his other half Mrs. Claus. Santa has a list, and they are definitely a lot of naughty people to punish.
While the film revolves around Santa and Mrs. Claus escaping from the asylum, running amok, and killing people, there is a story behind it. It has to do with something that took place in the past that Santa left unfinished, and while on his way to do so, he is crossing people off the list left and right while dodging the FBI and trying to stay out of reach of the local law enforcement.
What We Liked:
The story was interesting, and it had a nice surprise ending that you wouldn’t expect.
Santa and Mrs. Claus do a lot of killing, and the gore and special effects were great. The kills were fun, and unique sometimes, and were Christmas-themed.
The acting and cinematography were pretty good.
It was a good follow-up to Once Upon a Time at Christmas
What We Thought Could Have Been Better:
There was a lot of time spent on the investigation that we thought could have been used better.
Some of the dialogue and decisions seemed weird, and the writing was questionable at times.
It could have used some flashbacks or something more to tie into the backstory for people who haven’t seen the prequel.
Final Thoughts:
The Nights Before Christmas has its heart in the right place but still felt like it was missing something. It could have been that the investigation was a big part of the film and detracted from the theme a bit, but it felt more like a long episode of C.S.I. than horror film. We did really enjoy the parts where Santa and Mrs. Claus were doing the killing and the generous use of gore was definitely welcome. There was also a neat twist and double-cross, and who doesn’t like a good double-cross?
Overall, this was a decent Christmas-themed horror film, and while not anything extraordinary, it was a good effort for an indie film. We would recommend that you add this and the prequel to your marathons if you like blood, guts, and a good double-cross.
Trailer here:
