Considering the long string of upcoming horror remakes, Silent Night seems to come out of nowhere. The original caused a lot of controversy, considering it was simply a movie about a man dressed as Santa Clause going around and wasting people. There were a lot of mad mothers writing angry letters when this movie came out. There's nothing like a movie that causes some public outcry.
Of course, we live in different times now. People won't be writing angry letters to anyone because of Silent Night. Despite this fact, Silent Night, for the most part, is a breath of fresh air. An angry person in a Santa suit is going around slaughtering naughty people. A nice collection of fairly gruesome killings, some nudity, and a fun script with fun characters (though a lot of it's been there done that, it's still done with an attitude of fun), make this remake a pretty solid entry.
The only real snaffu in the plot is the weak description of the killer Santa's motives. Sure, we understand why, but it's glossed over. This could've been expanded, easily. The original also failed to really go into the motives, besides this kid is crazy from a past experience from his childhood. Maybe I thought the re-make might go for broke in this department, considering the source material.
But hey, it's still a pretty fun movie to watch, though it's kinda throwaway. Fun merriment, death, some boobs, and interesting characters make this a recommendation to horror fans, and even outsiders.
Grade: B
Evil is contagious, indeed! There's nothing better than good, effective, stylistic foreign horror. When Japanese horror gets it right, it's damn good stuff, which is the case with Infection. The story mostly revolves around a hospital that's about to be closed down. The staff here is bare bones. And there are barely enough medical supplies to handle the patients they do have. Worse yet, an ambulance dumps off a strange patient. Once this patient stays, bad things start to happen, especially when said patient dies because of unintentional malfeasance. The intended cover up sparks the beginning of the horror. The medical staff start facing their own personal demons, ghosts, and a strange case of green fluids. Great creep out film with a penchant for the morbid and unsettling. Sure, it's a tad heavy handed about the treatment of patients and the need to care for life, and the twist at the end isn't the greatest, but overall, this one's an effective slice of creepiness. It's a mix of quiet horror and Japanese intensity. Imagine The Grudge meets green slime meets fucked up psychology.
Another recent release from Shout! Factory is Halloween 2. I didn't think much of this sequel when I first watched it many years ago, but like The Funhouse, the updated transfer really allows colors to pop and the dark mood and atmosphere to really come through. My main criticism of the movie itself is how Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasence seem to have limited screen time, so there's not really a strong main character, only lots of small character threads. The creepiness of being stalked at a hospital is effective. The bloody moments, what few there are, come off much better with the new transfer--it's all about the little things. There's also a funny mistaken identity death, where a poor trick-r-treater wearing a Michael Myers mask gets hit by a car and burned. Certainly better than the later sequels, though only okay judged on its own merits, this one's a worthy addition to any fan's collection just because of the juiced up re-release. 
Yes, the movie isn't about Michael Myers. So what? There's plenty of sequels with him in it, so come on, give this one a chance already! Halloween III really is a underrated flick that deserves more love (and it gets the love; this release is hands down the best image quality and filled with the most extras). Halloween mask makers are the bad guys wanting to do bad things to our children. An advertising campaign, a catchy song, a commercial contest on Halloween night, what child can resist? What I like about this movie is its playful approach to horror. It's both creepy and at times funny. The use of mechanical machines and Halloween lore really impressed me. What really hinders this film is the ten to fifteen minute lull between the second and final act where we seem to lose touch with our two main protagonists. Once we get them back, the ending's actually more effective than I remember it. Cult classic indeed. I'll put it out there, this movie is better than Halloween 2. The spirit of horror really comes off in funny and scary moments in Season of the Witch. Love it! 
Trick 'R. Treat's another winner, though it's not completely perfect. I enjoy the wraparound stories revolving around the short stories. It's almost a fluid story in itself. It's too bad this one had a botched release. 
