Holly-jolly Christmas.
Krampus is a Christmas themed horror/comedy film that contains several “hey that guy” actors. I have attacked horror comedies recently on the blog, and this is mainly due to the fact that the genre seems to only produce crap.
Oddly, Krampus is a bit of an exception.
Not going to lie, I did not expect much out of the film when we sat down to watch it. Instead of sheer stupidity, we get a fairly common holiday comedy. The characters are likable, and we get to see the horror of having family come to your home and be complete jackasses. The films borrows some of these ideas from other holiday films, which is fine (I think). For the first thirty minutes you’ll think you’re watching something more akin to Christmas Vacation than a horror film.
I think that establishing the characters through comedy before the horror elements come in is the right idea. We follow Max, who has a brutal time with his cousins and gives up on the spirit of Christmas. His cousins are absurdly obnoxious, and the film sports a fantastic dinner scene with the unhappy family. Once Max gives up his beliefs about Christmas, Krampus is summoned.
The film does sport some fun adventure-ish moments as the weird holiday monsters begin to roam. The film stays funny for a good chunk of the narrative, and overall I enjoyed the characters and the story.
The problem with this movie is that it simply overstays its welcome. Once the monsters begin to attack in earnest, we are treated to a fight scene that felt like it went on for about six years. After that we get one of the most drawn out conclusions I have seen in recent memory.
The plot loses steam long before the credits roll, and I actually think this is mainly due to the film trying to reach the needed 90-minute mark. I do not understand why running time is so finicky. Less than 90 is a problem, but more than 120 people say it is too long. If Krampus would have cut down the filler and released maybe a 65-minute film it would have been damn entertaining.
The problem with the film as it is now is the conclusion is long and stupid that the high notes of the beginning are forgotten. For a comedy, the film starts quite high, but crashes into disaster territory in the end. Despite the weakness of the last third, I did enjoy it. If you want a dumb and funny film, this one isn’t too bad. 5/10
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