Silent Night, Deadly Night Fantastic Fest Review: A Killer Christmas Reimagining Gets the Axes Swinging

Silent Night, Deadly Night brings holiday Horror to Fantastic Fest.

Nothing gets the midnight crowd at Fantastic Fest more excited than a bit of holiday slashing! Fantastic Fest 2025’s first secret screening of the festival was Mike P. Nelson’s 2025 reimagining of the horror classic, ‘Silent Night, Deadly Night’, coming to theaters in December of this year.

Billy Chapman’s Bloody Journey

In this version of the story, after witnessing the death of his parents at Christmas, Billy Chapman (Rohan Campbell) is infected with a spirit that urges him to commit murders on the December days leading up to Christmas – all while wearing a Santa costume, of course. On the bright side, the people he murders have all done terrible, and I mean terrible, things. But when Billy meets a girl and wants to actually settle down in a small town rather than being a constant drifter, things start to go wrong when he begins to rebel against the murderous urges.

Storytelling and Pacing

The movie isn’t quick to explain the mechanics of what’s happening to the viewer, but lets them piece it together as the story unfolds. Typically, I appreciate not being hit over the head with rules, but it left me trying to piece together exactly what was happening in the early act of the movie. This leads to some pacing problems at the beginning, but when the action really starts swinging in the latter half of the movie, it’s a whole lot of fun.

Rohan Campbell in the Spotlight

While audiences weren’t necessarily overly receptive to the plot of David Gordon Green’s ‘Halloween Ends’, Rohan Campbell’s performance in that film is actually quite good. Between ‘Halloween Ends’, ‘The Monkey’, and now ‘Silent Night, Deadly Night’, Rohan Campbell has proved he’s got what it takes to make a horror slasher work. The way he is able to switch from innocent bumbling boy to menacing axe-wielder is a skill and an art in itself.

It’s a fun performance, and I had once again really warmed up to his performance by the time credits rolled. Ruby Modine plays the love interest, and horror fans may recognize her from the ‘Happy Death Day’ franchise. She has an interesting look and vibe, and really was a strong standout here. I am looking forward to seeing what she does in the future.

Bloody Practical Kills

As for the kills, they’re extremely satisfying. With an axe being the main source of murder, the kills are mostly practical, meaning a lot of blood and a lot of limbs flailing. The Fantastic Fest crowd was hooting and hollering at times.

Verdict

‘Silent Night, Deadly Night’ is a fun reimagining of the holiday horror classic. While some pacing and story issues hold up the first half of the film, the kills and practical effects make up for it by the time the credits roll. There will be no better way to spread some holiday cheer and see severed limbs flying than by checking this one out when it hits theaters on December 12th.