The Silent Night Deadly Night is the Strangest Christmas Horror Franchise

Silent Night Deadly Night is your typical horror Christmas film, that focuses on a madman that goes crazy during the holidays. A man named Billy Chapman experiences horrific trauma that involved the death of his parents by a killer Santa Claus, that leads to his own killer transformation. He goes on a killing spree, going after anyone that he deems to be 'naughty.'

I kind of felt bad for Billy, because he had experienced that trauma when he was a child, and he became some kind of psychopath during on Christmas, when he is asked to dress up like Santa Claus for his job. It also didn't help that he was taken to an orphanage with his brother, where they both continued to suffer at the hands of one of the people who worked there. 

This poor dude needed help, and instead of helping him, he became a monster. 

The first film sounds pretty great, right? It's a nice slasher film that has a lot of crazy kills, and a really messed up backstory of the killer. 

Then we get the rest of the films much later…and it makes NO SENSE. 

Silent Night Deadly Night 2 is a straight up comedy.

Billy's brother is the next one to become a psychopath, and it's now become one of the most popular horror movies for all the wrong reasons. His name is Ricky, and I have no idea how he followed in his brother's footsteps. Dude was a baby when his parents died, yet he somehow carries the memories of his brother now…unless his brother's evil somehow passed onto him???

It's hilarious to watch this guy tell his story after he has been captured, because his acting is so over the top, that it really makes the movie for me. He even laughs evilly in some scenes, and the acting is so bad, it's good. 

The sequel actually has quite the fanbase, and it's a shame that the third film couldn't live up to the sequel. 

Silent Night Deadly Night 3 is the worst film in the franchise.

I still question how this movie even got made. The picture is awful, the kills are awful, and the story really sucks. We follow Ricky now in an insane asylum, who is still continuing his murder spree. This idea could have worked so well, if the script had been given to the right director. 

I also remember a girl somehow gets involved in this film, but I don't remember the connection she has with Ricky. 

To be honest, I really don't care, because this movie was so bad. I know how harsh this sounds, but I'm telling you, this movie SUCKED. 

Silent Night Deadly Night 4: Initiation is a Madhouse.

This is where the franchise takes a massive turn from the direction of the slasher story. We are introduced to the world of witches, their creepy henchman, and a poor woman who gets caught up in their evil schemes during the holidays. 

I was taken aback by the disgusting practical effects, and the movie was pretty disturbing in some scenes. I don't remember why the witches had chosen the woman for their rituals, but damn, was it something else. It was 100% better than part 3, but it was definitely one of the strangest films in the franchise. 

But that is nothing compared to the last film. 

Silent Night Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker is about an evil version of Pinocchio.

I don't know why, but I kind of liked this one. It was definitely the craziest one out of all 5 films, but I didn't mind how insane the story was. It was pretty original, and I thought the concept worked quite well, despite all of the crazy stuff that happens in the film. 

Pinocchio and his father are running a toy shop, but they are creating evil toys to kill people during the holidays. The practical effects are top tier in this film, and it's also one of the few films that also contains a continuation. The main woman from part 4 is in this one, and she hints that she had experienced her own supernatural adventure during Christmas to her friend, who runs into the evil Pinocchio. 

It's so weird, but this movie is enjoyable in its own way. 

I'm hoping for a remake for this movie one day, can you imagine how over the top this movie can become, if given to the right director?

What do you think of the Silent Night Deadly Night franchise?

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Thank you for reading!

Emy Quinn