The Mosley Review: Violent Night
Its that wonderful time of the year again and you know what that means. It is time for all the holiday music to truly be listened to at right time and definitely time to get your annual viewing of Christmas films marathon started. Every year I watch "It’s a Wonderful Life", "Christmas with the Joker" episode from the Batman: Animated Series and my favorite the first Die Hard film. Every year there is a film about Christmas that is always cheerful and features old Saint Nick himself. Some are fun and heartwarming like "The Christmas Chronicles" or sometimes a little more funny, crood and dark like "Bad Santa". What I haven't seen is an action film featuring Santa Claus in a situation where he is vulnerable and out of his element. Something that acknowledges his legend and maybe shows a more jaded hero. This film delivered that in spades and I loved every second of it. Now it wasn't only about the amazing amount of creative violence and hilariously well timed usage of classic holiday phrases, it actually was a heartwarming tale of how adults have forgotten how to believe in good and how powerful a child's belief can reinvigorate ones belief. It was a surprisingly smart action film that is of this generation, but also fun for the older crowd as well. I mean who doesn't want to see Santa save a family from armed goons comitting a heist on Christmas?!
David Harbour was absolutely perfect as a modern grumpy and heavily intoxicated Santa Claus. He is truly in his element as the every man that has almost lost his faith in humanity and I loved watching him fumble around while delivering presents. I liked that he wasn't jolly and his commentary on the state of gifts was hilarious and true. Once he gets involved with the action in the film, he was wild, funny and just awesome. He explores Santa's past and then quickly brings back the heart of the character in so many heartwarming moments. You can't help but love David as he takes Santa on a rollercoaster of emotion and creative action. Alex Hassell was good as Jason Lightstone as he tries his best to reconnect with his family. Alexis Louder was great as his estranged wife Linda and their chemistry was excellent. Leah Brady was outstanding as Gertrude "Trudy" Lightstone and she steals your heart in the best way the moment she's on screen. Most child actors can go too over the top or completely undercook the innocence of childhood, but she perfectly balanced. She really reignites the heart of Santa and I loved that she got in on the action as well. She pretty much is almost the R rated version of Kevin McCallister. Beverly D'Angelo was perfectly savage as Jason's mother and Trudy's grandmother Gertrude Lightstone. I always enjoy her on screen presence as she nails that "take no crap from anyone" attitude. Brendan Fletcher was fun as one of the henchman in the heist codenamed Krampus. He was such a good sociopath and I think he is truly an underrated actor. John Leguizamo is the head of the operation as codename Scrooge and my god was he amazing. I loved his dark sense of humor and relentless brutality. Once we get into his backstory, he really embodies his codename. I loved his dialogue with Santa the most and especially their fight scene. It was personal and sad. I'm so happy to see him back in the spotlight.
The score by Dominic Lewis was great and cheery in the right moments and then fantastically joyful and bombastic during the action scenes. I liked his subtle twist on the classic Christmas tunes like Silent Night and Carol of the Bells. They're in there and well hidden. The action in the film was expertly shot and I loved that you could see that most of it was David Harbour really doing it. All the fight scenes were creative and used their environments in the best way. I cheered so many times as a few ornaments were used in brutal ways. Like I said before, this film was exactly what you expect in terms of action, but it will definitely surprise you on how heartwarming the story truly is. This is definitely a new favorite Christmas film that I will add to my annual rotation. Let me know what you thought of the film or my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
