Tag Archives: xmas

Silent Night

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Vampire Owl: We have always wished for silent nights in favour of vampire activity.

Vampire Bat: Vampires have always hoped for silence to keep on hunting, that too in a flash.

Vampire Owl: For vegetarian vampires, we do hunt really well.

Vampire Bat: We have hunted evil better these days.

Vampire Owl: Yet, humans consider us to be evil.

Vampire Bat: There will never be bigger evil than humans. Their evil returns every time and rises like a phoenix.

Vampire Owl: Well, we are yet to find a good human during our visits to their lands.

Vampire Bat: But serial killers are too easy to find, especially on the 11th day of terror. We are watching them at all times.

Vampire Owl: They call these people psychos, but this cruelty comes natural to them.

Vampire Bat: There are always much bigger modes of cruelty among humans. Just make a call on the vampire phone.

[Gets some tacos and three cups of taro tea].

What is the movie about? :: On a Christmas evening, a child is seen traveling by car with his parents from his grandfather’s place and their vehicle is seen as stopping on a remote road. A man dressed as Santa Claus arrives in another car and murders Billy’s parents in front of him. The killer, who is also stabbed, is revealed to be Charlie (Mark Acheson). As the child comes into physical contact with Charlie, an electrical surge appears to pass between them, and there seems to be something which has passed on from the dying killer. As the child grows up, known to the society as Billy Chapman (Rohan Campbell), he is seen as taking over the duty of committing murders while wearing the costume of Santa Claus during the Christmas season. The idea goes like this – during each Christmas, he begins hearing Charlie’s voice urging him to punish people who have been evil, and from then he would need to commit a murder for each day leading up to Christmas. There will be no failure to follow this particular procedure.

So, what happens with the events here as we just keep looking? :: After committing a quick murder at a motel, Billy escapes from the scene to avoid suspicion and arrives in the town of Hackett. There he becomes instantly interested in the beautiful, but angry lady of the town Pamela Sims (Ruby Modine) and her father Dean Sims (Lawrence Brown) who runs a gift shop. He gets a job in the same shop, and gets closer to Pamela, finally beginning an intimate relationship. But he never really losses his skill in murders as new victims is found and killed without remorse. A local police officer and Pamela’s abusive ex-boyfriend Max Benedict (David Tomlinson) is not happy about Billy being around her, and also develops suspicions about the new person moving into the town after which too many murders happen at the same place. But it is revealed that there is some other series of incidents happening in the same area, with little kids going missing one after another. There is a suspected abductor referred to as “the Snatcher”, but it is to be seen how the incidents go on as Christmas gets closer.

The defence of Silent Night, Deadly Night :: The slasher horror mode activated very quickly with this one, not really wasting that much time. The protagonist here is a tragic anti-hero who is forced to go through what he does, rather than the usual supernatural or psychotic villain, and that surely brings a change from the usual. There is time spent in exploring his trauma and motivations, which makes the character more relatable. To add to it the same, there is a mythology, supernatural elements and mystery involving missing children. The horror effects work well with the blood and gore, as one would expect from a slasher horror movie, and deaths become natural part of the film with ease. The killing are also justified for a change, instead of making the whole thing random or a case of revenge like some other flicks. The holiday mood can also be felt with the Christmas elements around, and the ending nicely supports a sequel which could have further variety with the kind of serial killer it develops with the finish.

The claws of flaw :: Silent Night, Deadly Night feels absurd even for a slasher horror movie with its content which does not innovate, or chooses not to bring some nice creative elements. There were many moments which it could have made more interesting, especially by adding usual elements of the genre which have been going through a classic path for a very long time. The question about what special elements this one brings or what it brings as part of the genre, would need better answers here. There is also a certain amount of extra complication that comes with some of these additions here, and the background tale with the mythology is not that much thought about. There is the slow pace and drag that comes in between, and the romance is also not going too deep, and never being emotional enough. The strange ideas are not that much explored, and we feel the need during regular intervals. Many viewers could feel that there is something missing around here, as the movie seems to just go on as it wishes to, and thinks not that much about connections.

The performers of the soul :: Rohan Campbell makes the main character memorable, and worth being the Christmas killer that we would need to follow. There is something more than a serial killer or a murderous psychopath about him, as more aspects of the character are nicely shown by him. A man with a deeply damaged childhood and never-ending emotional conflicts also with the trauma and violent impulses, remains safe in his hands while going through vulnerability and terrifying menace. Ruby Modine makes her character interesting, and there is something about the same all the time, and might have even more to contribute later in a possible sequel – there is a lot that a scream queen in a slasher can do. There are violence and darkness in her, which she manages to display with a charming ease. Her scenes bring some of the most emotionally grounded moments to the movie, and elevate the whole thing. Mark Acheson has a more unusual role, but contributes nicely to the film’s dark and supernatural elements.

How it finishes :: This serves as the second remake of the 1984 film with the same name, after the 2012 reimagining of the same. The audience who enjoys traditional slashers focused mainly on the brutal kills and other elements may find the added mythology and the strange emotional storytelling distracting, as deviation from the usual ideas is surely present here. This is not your classic old slasher of nostalgia and memories for sure. But those who are willing to accept its strange mix of genres are likely to find a surprisingly engaging work with a divergence. Despite not sticking to a classic tradition, it remains a solid Christmas horror film that will probably appeal most to a certain kind of audience. One would guess that making it interesting for all kinds of viewers was never really the idea with this one. Still, we are having the slashers in this world which is going after nonsense because it pretends to be funny, and that much is hope with feathers. Something more sinister might still be coming in a sequel.

Release date: 12th December 2025
Running time: 96 minutes
Directed by: Mike P Nelson
Starring: Rohan Campbell, Ruby Modine, David Lawrence Brown, David Tomlinson, Mark Acheson

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✠ The Vampire Bat.

Bodies at Rest

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Vampire Owl: Can the bodies be ever at rest as long as the undead are there?

Vampire Bat: We have never been at rest, as far as I know.

Vampire Owl: The castle is witness and proof to that particular statement.

Vampire Bat: I guess that they didn’t have a vampire or zombie to turn them.

Vampire Owl: Even a sorcerer or a witch could do that. Necromancers were actually available for consultation.

Vampire Bat: Even Dr. Frankenstein was available for the bodies.

Vampire Owl: Well, I wouldn’t recommend Mr. Frankenstein to do that again.

Vampire Bat: He is known for that one event involving the creation of life.

Vampire Owl: Yes, he is notorious for the same, and it is not a good sign.

Vampire Bat: Still, he is the one I look forward to, for creating dumb creatures with no teeth, those which walk like zombies.

[Gets a strawberry cake and three cups of white tea].

What is the movie about? :: A much respected pathologist Chen Jia Hao (Nick Cheung) and his assistant Lynn Qiao (Yang Zi) continue to work late at a public morgue on the evening of Christmas, as people begins to celebrate. Even though it is the time to rejoice, there is not much of a crowd outside due to the thunderstorms occuring outside, and people being advised to stay at home at least for the night, or until a notice comes from the authorities. It is then that three armed criminals come into the morgue, demanding that the doctor and his assistant give them a bullet from the dead body of a girl was shot dead earlier. They beat up the elder security guard known to everyone as Uncle Jin (Shu-liang Ma), and the doctor seems to have been left with no option, with phone cables being cut, mobile phones taken, and nobody left inside the building, as it is Christmas evening with a terrible weather making everyone leave early.

So, what happens with the events here? :: The three men who goes under the names, Santa (Richie Jen), Elf (Carlos Chan) and Rudolph (Jiayi Feng) manages to get a bullet from the doctor, but it turns out that it was not one from their gun. The doctor had managed to trick them into believing that he had taken the bullet out of the girl’s dead body, but he hadn’t. After the criminals leave, he takes the body from her back, and manages to break out of the room where they were locked in, only to be chased by the returning criminals again, as he tries to sneak out of there with his assistant and the injured security guard. But the criminals are quick, and they want to get that bullet to remove any proof, because this case has many implications. Can there be hope for the trio to escape and give the bullet to the police, before the criminals catch up to them? Are there other secrets which are to be revealed as time passes? Will this really be a Christmas night with joy, or is there unlimited terror awaiting them all?

The defence of Bodies at Rest :: The movie does have an interesting premise, with three people being caught in a morgue with three masked killers ready to shoot at them, unless the decide the give away the evidence of a murder – it is the kind of thing that keeps us interesting from the beginning itself. As the movie begins, there is a fine shot of the Chinese city that displays the beauty of modernity at night with the lights, and also showing the severity of nature with thunderstorms coming in strong and seemingly without an end – it is more or less an early reflection of what is to follow, as the thriller unfolds. The action scenes in the movie are all believable, as they fight normally, and both the doctor and his assistant while trying to resist, get themselves on the receiving end of the punches and kicks. There are some twists to be revealed in between, and you are in full support of the two protagonists to make it out, while the three classical Aristotelian unities of place, time and action are maintained, with everything happening in the morgue at a night, focusing on one bullet and dead body, having only minor exception.

The claws of flaw :: Bodies at Rest could have done more, and there is absolutely no doubt about it here – there are enough dead bodies in the morgue to assure that, and there is enough going on inside and outside which could have further contributed to increasing the level of this movie. A morgue is always a place of eerie and fear, and with some dead bodies, the same could have been achieved – even the corpse of the girl doesn’t serve as a reason for adding some terror in here. It would have had many places to hide, and even the morgue could have had secrets to be unveiled. The two protagonists, especially the girl could have found more spaces to escape through, as she is quite small. A better connection between the doctor and the main antagonist could have also been nice. The villains often end up being funny, and that is not too good considering the fact that they are wearing the masks, holding the guns, and are ready to murder anyone to take the bullet out of the dead girl’s body.

Peformers of the soul :: Nick Cheung plays the main character here, the one who qualifies as the protagonist from the first scene itself. He is very good, as we see the doctor handling things so well, and he goes through the character nicely. The man who is ready to take a hit to save the forensic evidence has you supporting him throughout the movie. There is also a flashback about him which is discussed here, and it becomes linked to the criminals who have something more to hide than the case of one bullet inside a young girl. Yang Zi is a lovely addition to this movie, and one has to say that she provides some surprises that we love. It has to be said that she fights incredibly well, as she runs away from the criminals, and she brings kind of an escape attack every time here. The three criminals are played very well, and Richie Jen stands out among them as the leader and the focused one. Carlos Chan and Jiayi Feng supports well enough to keep the team going. Shu-liang Ma who plays the security guard gets less to do, but does it okay.

How it finishes :: Bodies at Rest tries to compete with other thrillers which seem to make something out of an idea which feels great from the beginning itself, and the action is well restricted to a single place during one night with all the focus there. It does succeed in doing that up to an extent, but one is not supposed to expect something like The Autopsy of Jane Doe, for this is not that kind of near-perfect thriller. We do have an urge to watch these kinds of movies, with people locked in a morgue full of dead bodies and criminals hunting them, all being something that catches our attention and interest easily. Even though the reviews haven’t been that kind to this one, this Chinese movie is something that will keep you interested throughout the movie, and even before the attack on the morgue – it has that kind of a perfect setting to begin things. Bodies at Rest is only the fourth full-length Chinese movie I watched, and it was surely worth the one and half hours of run-time.

Release date: 16th August 2019
Running time: 94 minutes
Directed by: Renny Harlin
Starring: Nick Cheung, Richie Jen, Yang Zi, Carlos Chan, Jiayi Feng, Shu-liang Ma

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✠ The Vampire Bat.

Ente Ummante Peru

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What is the movie about? :: Hameed (Tovino Thomas) is left with nobody to call a relative after the death of his father Haider (Renji Panicker). Even though he inherits the big house along with his father’s business as well as a few acres of land, he is lonely – as he has nobody to call his own, he is not able to get married to a respectable family either. He, along with Beeran (Hareesh Perumanna) and Hamsa (Mamukkoya) keeps looking for a suitable alliance for him. He soon falls in love with Sainaba (Saipriya Deva), a girl whose proposal had already come for him, but was rejected by her father because he seemed to be nothing less than an orphan. While he is running his family business and looking for a way to marry Sainaba, he comes across a will left by his father, which points to two women, and one of them could be his mother. He decides that this is his chance to find his family.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: So, the the wives are to be given a share of the property, and there is the need to find both of them to figure out which one his mother is. The two of them are located in Kozhikode and Ponnani in the form of Ramlath (Shanthi Krishna) and Aisha (Urvashi), the former being married with two children and the latter living alone in her house on the side of the lake. But the question remains if this can happen because the truth is still hidden in some of the pages about which there is not much information, even for Haider’s good old friend, Sivankutty (Dileesh Pothan) who seemed to know almost everything about his friend’s past. Can Hameed rise above all these to get what he wants? Will he finally cease being an orphan? Can he finally marry the girl whom he loves? It would take a journey not just through North Kerala, but through North India to make sure about that.

The defence of Ente Ummante Peru :: Unlike the usual stories with the same setting, this one never really does manage to keep selling the same thing again and again. But the tale is kept simple and enjoyable for families. It sticks to the point from the beginning to the end, never really deviating from the path or having moments of dullness – the total movie length makes sure that it stays put. There is nothing exaggerated here with everything going on while staying close to life. The feel-good factor never really falls behind here, and the visuals, wherever it is set, stays good. The emotional side is strong, and by the end, it reaches an even better level. Along with the expected comic side, the use of gallows humour is to be noted – it is the human condition that makes us think on more than one occasion, as the point of life and its meaning is always something to ponder about with death making a grand entry at so many unexpected times.

The claws of flaw :: There is no special ingredient with this one, as we look deep into this tale of search for the main character’s mother. This is the kind of story that we have heard for a long time, with search being for parents or siblings. The children separated from their parents or brothers is an idea which goes older than some of those very old flicks, not just in Malayalam or South India. Even Oru Indian Pranayakatha had a similar search with its main character looking for both parents, after returning from Canada and collecting clues leading to more than one state in India. The songs and music are not really that good. We never really get that much of a romance between the leading characters, and one has to remember that Tovino used to be an expert in that. The journey through Uttar Pradesh could have been more interesting, and the supporting characters could have been closer to our heart that what they seemed to be.

The performers of the soul :: Tovino Thomas is the one to keep this movie going with a realistic and lovable performance once again. His last movies Oru Kuprasidha Payyan, Theevandi and Maradona – all were among the strongest flicks of the year. Here, we continue to admire his work, as the emotional state of a man looking for his mother is nicely shown – he is someone who is looking for his last hope in changing things. This is not the first time that he has shown this with the same strength though. Urvashi had a fine role in Aravindante Athidhikal, but here she has a lot more to do, and she has done the same well. It is in no way, an easy character to play this time, as her role becomes the most significant thing in the movie ever since she makes her entrance. We hope that we see her in more movies, and without that many breaks in between.

Further performers of the soul :: Meanwhile, there is a new face in Malayalam movie industry in the form of Saipriya Deva who plays the heroine, and she does that with a lot of charm. It can be seen that the movie doesn’t focus on her at all, as far as the complete plot is considered. We can surely keep her close to our hearts though. Malayalam movie industry does need its heroines more than its heroes, and more skilled actresses will elevate the level of the characters that they play. At the same time, Hareesh Perumanna in charge of the comedy, and he does that with amazing skill. Shanthi Krishna has a smaller, but emotionally strong role – since her return in Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela, we have all wished to see her on the big screen very often. Mamukkoya and Siddique got the kind of roles which they have done before, and brings no challenge to them, while Dileesh Pothan makes a short, but nice appearance of significance.

How it finishes :: There are four Malayalam movies releasing in the beginning of Christmas vacation, and this is just one of them. Unlike the others, this movie seems to have made no big claim, and therefore the expectations have been kept low. We know what expectations could do to a movie like Odiyan, and how the low expectations for DC movies did help Aquaman in the early stages. Ente Ummante Peru brings the surprise not only due to the lower expectations, but also with how it remains so simple and yet so effective at the same time. It is one movie which possesses and displays the true spirit of Christmas season, more than anything else. Therefore, choosing Ente Ummante Peru over most of the other movies won’t be that difficult a job. The idea of feeling happy and leaving the theatre with a smile on one’s face never has a substitute, especially when with family.

Release date: 21st December 2018
Running time: 131 minutes
Directed by: Jose Sebastian
Starring: Tovino Thomas, Saipriya Deva, Urvashi, Shanthi Krishna, Hareesh Perumanna, Dileesh Pothan, Mamukkoya, Siddique

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.