“Violent Night” is a Holiday Movie released on December 2, 2022 directed by Tommy Wirkola and written by Pat Casey and Josh Miller. The movie offers a new spin to classic holiday films, as it follows an action–filled sequence while still enforcing the traditional values displayed by other Christmas movies. The movie is R–Rated and may not be suitable for younger audiences.
Plot
Trudy, played by Leah Brady, takes off to spend Christmas Eve at her wealthy Grandmother’s (Beverly D’Angelo) house with her mother Linda, played by Alexis Louder, and father Jason, played by Alex Hassell. While there, we are introduced to her aunt Alva (Edi Patterson), uncle Morgan (Cam Gigandet), and cousin Bert (Alexander Elliot). At the end of the night, Trudy is given a walkie talkie that can communicate with Santa as an early gift. She reveals her want for her parents, who are separated, to reconcile.
In the night, Jimmy Martinez, played by John Leguizamo, breaks into Gertrude’s house with a crew of mercenaries. Their goal is to steal a large sum of money she has stored in a safe. She and her family are caught and held at gunpoint while Jimmy and his team ransack the house. Conveniently, Santa Claus, played by David Harbour, is abandoned by his reindeer in the house while delivering presents after his reindeer were startled by the sound of gunshots. Santa must now save Trudy and her family while consecutively saving the spirit of Christmas.
Recommended Audiences
“Violent Night” is a Rated–R film, meaning that it is only recommended for mature audiences. The movie may be upsetting to certain audiences, including children. The film does contain blood, violence, mature themes, and mature language, which should be taken into consideration before viewing.
Acting
The acting within “Violent Night” was very good, especially from the two child actors in the movie. Leah Brady did a great job at portraying the childlike excitement that children have during Christmas. Similarly, Alexander Elliot also did great in his acting, portraying the nastiness of a rich teenager rather than the innocence of a child. The actors playing the adults did well portraying all of their characters. David Harbour performed beautifully as Santa, and I really like the twist he displayed on the character.
Scripts and Characters
The script in Violent Night is not bad by any means, however it does fall short in certain departments. Jimmy’s lines could be considered cringe worthy, as the script repeatedly has him make Christmas puns during the robbery. Alva, Morgan, and Bert are all insufferable, as the self-centered nature of their characters makes them unbearable to watch. Trudy’s character adds a warmhearted tone to the movie (despite the bloodiness), as she still retains her childhood innocence and faith in Santa to save them during the robbery. Much of the writing within certain scenes definitely adds comedic effect to the movie, including a scene where the mercenary holding the captives pins them against each other and they begin to argue, discussing who should be killed and who should not be killed.
Special Effects
The special effects in “Violent Night” were realistic in some parts, however unrealistic in others. The blood in the movie was largely realistic, however the CGI made blood was very clearly fake. At one point in the movie, fake snow was tossed around a room through a vent, and although some of it was likely real, there was clearly a good amount of snow edited onto the movie as an effect. Generally speaking, the effects worked and did an adequate job in adding an authentic feel to the movie.
Firsthand Opinion
Mariella Spina, a 16-year-old junior at Colonia High School, shared her opinions after her viewing of ‘Violent Night.’ ‘I enjoyed it,’ said Spina, ‘For being a violent Christmas movie, It really wasn’t that bad. The acting was pretty enjoyable to watch.’
