Do you want to see Stranger Things’ David Harbour as a buff, raw-knuckled Santa Claus fighting off an army of mooks in a home invasion action movie? Of course you do—you’re a cultural consumer of rare and refined tastes. Violent Night is in Australian cinemas now—off you go.
If you need more (why? It’s not like we’ve buried the lede here) Harbour plays the honest-to-Christmas Santa—he’s not a mall Santa ala Billy Bob Thornton in the immortal Bad Santa, he’s the real deal. When the wealthy family (headed by Vacation’s Beverly D’Angelo) of an innocent young girl (Leah Brady) is taken hostage in their mansion by a squad of Die Hard-alike (or perhaps Reindeer Games?) baddies led by John Leguizamo, what’s Santa to do but slaughter the bloody lot of them? There’s more to it, of course, but not much.
This high concept seasonal showdown comes to us courtesy of Norwegian director Tommy Wirkola, who gave us the enjoyably loopy Dead Snow movies, along with the recent The Trip. It’s produced by 87 North, Atomic Blonde and Bullet Train director David Leitch’s production shingle, so you know the action is going to be fantastic. Incredibly, this is only Harbour’s second feature film leading role—while we’ve loved him on the small screen and in plenty of supporting roles (Black Widow, Black Mass, et al) his only other starring turn was in the little-loved Hellboy remake. Be certainly looks the biz here, though, bringing that weary tough guy energy to the part.
We love a subversive Christmas movie, so we are well and truly on board for Violent Night, which simply must draw some inspiration from the “The Night the Reindeer Died” bit in Scrooged, right?
If you like your holidays leavened with some hardcore action, you’ll be lining up for a ticket alongside us.
