3 Reasons Why Violent Night is an Instant Holiday Classic Movie

Each and every year, we get a few Christmas films just in time for the Holidays. Studios trying their best to capture the Holiday spirit. Whether they are straight-to-DVD flicks, or big Hollywood movies, there is always a Christmas themed film, released around the Holiday season. In 2022, we got one of the best Christmas-themed films to come out in recent memory, with ‘Violent Night’. The film stars David Harbour as Father Christmas himself, but as a drunken, grizzled Santa Clause that has lost his love for Christmas. As he is making the rounds on Christmas Eve, he gets stuck in a millionaire’s mansion, where a helpless family falls victim to a home invasion, Santa must protect the family and save Christmas. The premise is delightfully silly, and the film is as violent as you would expect from a film titled ‘Violent Night’, but what makes this film truly special is its heart. There’s a lot to love here and today, to celebrate its release on home media, I will be breaking down the 3 reasons why ‘Violent Night’ is an instant Holiday classic. So, without further ado, let's go!

‘Ho, Ho, Ho Merry Christmas’ – David Harbour’s turn as Santa Claus–

For any Christmas movie to be considered a holiday favourite, the two elements that need to be pitch perfect, are the jolly man himself Santa, and the essence of Christmas, and I can safely say, Violent Night gets both of these oh, so right. David Harbour's turn as Santa Claus is memorable and honestly, one of my favourites takes on the character of ALL TIME. Yes, ALL TIME!!!  He processes that Santa charm, whilst also giving additional layers to the character. The grizzled, grumpy old Santa is something we haven’t really seen before (Billy-Bob Thornton’s bad Santa aside), so it was nice to see the character start off like this and then progressively get more and more likeable as the film goes on. The film also does a great job of exploring the backstory of Santa we get a brief backstory of Santa as a Viking warrior, stooped in Norse mythology. Seeing Santa as a Viking was something I didn’t know I wanted, but when I got it, man am I glad I did. Its only brief but is an exciting and unique prospect that we hope is explored in the announced sequel ‘Violent Night 2’, expected to hit cinemas in late 2024.

It’s Christmas time – the films use of the holiday spirit –

Another element I love is the use of Christmas in the film. Every frame is drenched in Christmas, whether it be decorations, costumes or just that warm Christmas feeling, there’s plenty to go around. The Christmas tone really helps you get in the Holiday spirit. The film has a whimsical score as well, from composer Dominic Lewis (The Kings Man, Peter Rabbit & Bullet Train), that really stops the film in Christmas. The added whimsy really does make it feel like Christmas and adds to the Christmas aesthetic and tone of the entire film. You really can’t get more Christmassy than Silent Night. Just another reason why Violent Night is an instant Holiday classic.

One violent night – the action –

Violent Night has drawn comparison to Christmas classic Die Hard (yes, it’s a Christmas movie, deal with it) and for good reason. The plot feels like it is a spiritual successor to Die Hard, just replace John McClain with Santa and Alan Rickman with John Leguizamo and you have a violent Night. As Die Hard is one of the best action films of all time as well as one of the best Christmas films, Violent Night had a lot to live up to and whilst it doesn’t reach the impossible heights of Die hard, but Violent Night takes its ultraviolent premise and has a lot of fun with it. The film focuses heavily on the disposal of the bad guys throughout the film, which is a high point of the action. The film borrows sequences from Home Alone but ups the ante by creating a gory and ultraviolet scene of a kid setting up booby traps to catch the bad guys. It’s a fun little homage and the scene itself works on its own even if you don’t understand or miss the reference. The action here is a lot of fun and easily one of the high points of the film, however some scenes may prompt you to cover your eyes or turn away from the screen. Things do get bloody…

Whilst it may no longer be Christmas time, you can always stock up on Christmas films, so you’re ready for the Holiday season and a must-have for this collection, is without a doubt, ‘Violent Night’. It's funny, violent, full of Christmas and heart. It's honestly the perfect Christmas film for action fans but exceeds that expectation to become a true crowd pleasing Holiday classic. A must-own for Christmas lovers. Don’t miss out on this one, pick-up your copy on DVD today. 

Buy Violent Night Collectors Edition on DVD here

Christopher Pattison wrote this blog post for Sanity. See more from Chris here