If you’ve heard of this film, then it means you either remember the catchy title or know about its well- publicized controversy. Despite being the second Christmas-themed horror movie, this movie, featuring a demented Santa Claus, brought the wrath of film critics and the Parent-Teacher Association down on it. Siskel and Ebert even went as far as reading the film’s credits on the air and yelling “shame” after each name. Was the film as brutal and tasteless as people said it was? Did it destroy the sanctity of Christmas? Was it that bad? Should the cast and crew be ashamed of this picture? In my opinion, no filmmaker should be ashamed of anything he or she has fought and bled for and with this bloody little product director Charles E. Sellier Jr. has nothing to be ashamed of.

The film is basically about the warping of two young boys, which ties the first and second parts together (but we’ll deal with part 2 next time). One Christmas eve, Billy, who is around 6 years old and his baby brother Ricky, who is 6 months old, watch as their parents are raped and killed by a drunken thief in a Santa Claus outfit. They end up in an orphanage where they see a nun have sex. Then Billy grows up into an awkward muscle-bound goon who gets a job as a stock boy for the local toy store, Ira’s Toys.

One day, the store’s Santa doesn’t show so they ask Billy to don St. Nick’s garb and things seem to go well, until he sees Pamela, a fellow co-worker he has a crush on, being mauled by an overly-gropy employee. Well, Billy snaps and begins a killing spree through the town that includes all 4 of his co- workers; Linnea Quigley’s young, supple breasts which get impaled on deer antlers and her dopey boyfriend, a pair of sledding bullies, and a bored cop. The rest of the cops are instantly put on the alert by Sister Margaret, who helped Billy get the job at Ira’s, and together they comb the streets for the poor psycho.

Billy ends up back at the orphanage to settle a score with the Mother Superior who treated him and his brother badly. But not before a priest in a Santa outfit is gunned down by mistake in his place. The cops get to the orphanage just in time and gun Billy down before he can take out the nun. Billy, however, has just enough time to pass the torch to Ricky, who looks up from his brother’s corpse and says to the Mother Superior: "Naughty!" We couldn’t ask for a better setup for a sequel.

This is the kind of slasher film that helped define the word "slasher film". Along with Halloween and Black Christmas, this film (which is sadly often forgotten) helps establish the rules of the game for the slasher genre. Sure it has a bit of a slow start, but when the film gets cracking it’s vintage splatter action and Billy makes for a compelling and sympathetic psycho. I could have done with a little less orphanage back story and more killing, but it does help Billy grow on us. There’s blood and boobs, and the last 40 minutes are harrowing and extremely entertaining. It is a merry fucking Christmas indeed, my friend.

- Jose Prendes