THE TRAVIS BICKLE OF CHRISTMAS KNOWS IF YOU'VE BEEN NAUGHTY OR NICE
★★★★★ (A Must-See)
Director: Lewis Jackson
1980
Christmas Evil (also titled You Better Watch Out) is a must-see classic for any horror fan during the holiday season because it encompasses the meaning of Christmas, as trite as that sounds. Very few stories can make you feel as conflicted and tense as the one about Harry (Brandon Maggart), a man whose psyche was altered by a bad childhood experience and has since coped by embracing Christmas all year round. He even works in a toy factory, a job that gave him great satisfaction until he was taken off the toy line and promoted to an office position. What I love about Harry (yes, Harry, our future killer) is that he’s living his best life, even if it’s unconventional. Happily single, he hangs out with his creepy doll wall and reindeer decorations, and gets joy out of playing Santa no matter the month. He even keeps track of the happenings of the neighborhood children with the purest intentions, and innocently loves them…with the exception that little shit Moss Garcia.
Harry’s doing fine ya’ll, but no one wants to leave him alone, and this includes bullying co-workers and a brother who is sick of worrying all the time. In my opinion, Harry is the victim here—a mentally-ill man pushed to the brink after minding his own business, and a few events do the pushing: the promotion, a trick by a co-worker, and the fact that kids at an unfortunately named hospital are being screwed out of toys by his greedy bosses. When Harry finally murders, it’s a lashing out at those who hurt others. I said you will feel conflicted and I wasn’t joking. As sweet and funny as Christmas Evil can be, it is also sad and dark. Maggart does a magnificent job playing a man who could have been frightening or revolting in anyone else’s hands.
Christmas Evil has the dirty feel of Pieces with the subtle comfort of familiar suburban surroundings. Director Lewis Jackson draws out our dread as we watch Harry crumble under the façade he’s been hiding behind. Thanksgiving seems to be the turning point, when he shirks dinner with his brother’s family to give all his attention to the Macy’s parade and Santa’s float. Shortly after, he makes a red suit of his own, and as he laughs maniacally in the mirror after gluing a beard to his face, we wonder how this bloodbath is going to begin and end. But it’s not that simple. Christmas Evil defies the marks you have to hit in a horror film and relies on the unexpected, which is wildly entertaining up to the crash ending many might not see coming.
Socially-awkward Harry doesn’t know how to fit in with others, but is given the chance with a beloved alter ego that he believes allows people to “understand his tune.” Unfortunately, this can’t protect him from those on Santa’s naughty list. If your heart doesn’t ache when you see Harry’s sad little face in his brother’s window at the end, then you’ve got a lump of coal for a heart. The lesson of inclusivity in Christmas Evil is what the holiday spirit is made of, and I have nothing but good tidings for Harry, wherever he may be.
GENRES: Funny, Psychological
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