In November of 1984, Wes Craven’s A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET was released in theaters, becoming one of the horror genre’s most beloved and impactful installments. Just a week before its release, another film was making controversial headlines and pissing off moms and dads across the country. The film was SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT, an exploration – nay, exploitation – of childhood trauma under the morbid guise of one of the world’s most beloved figures turned murderous: an ax-wielding Santa Claus.
The film, written by Michael Hickey, inspired by one line of text from a book by Paul Caimi (who would receive a “story by” credit in good faith) and directed by Charles Sellier, would go on to live in infamy after a protest group calling themselves Citizens Against Movie Madness (CAMM) formed solely to picket so hard the film was pulled from theaters only two weeks after its release. Having shared one weekend at the box office with A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, it’s been estimated that SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT could have gone on to earn twenty million had it not been banned. As fate would have it, the film would still manage to turn a profit before being yanked.
The years-spanning story tells of young Billy, who witnesses a violent, traumatizing act by a criminal donning a Santa Claus costume that would cause lifelong psychosis, sexual ignominy, confusion over the difference between being naughty or nice, and an uncontrollable fear of the jolly man in the red suit. This, of course, leads to his eventual descent into madness and, obviously, his massacre while dressed as Santa. As if a murderous Mr. Claus wasn’t enough, the film threw in heaps of nudity, sex, and a blatant statement against the Catholic Church. But perhaps most offensive was the showcasing of children in danger at the hands of their beloved holiday hero.
The film features no big names, aside from a break-out performance by Linnea Quigley, who would go on to Scream Queen fame in such titles as RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, NIGHT OF THE DEMONS, and GRADUATION DAY. Her notable (and topless) turn as an ill-fated babysitter leads to one of the most iconic moments in slasher history, part of which was initially cut from the film. Through the years, six minutes of footage has been restored, albeit of poor quality. These six minutes may seem relatively tame by today’s standards, but in 1984, this film’s “naughty” and “punishing” content was considered exceedingly shocking.
It’s not only the film’s content that’s upsetting, though. The tone of the movie is mean-spirited as hell. This isn’t a fun romp of a “slay-ride” (which happens to be the original working title of the film) but a cruel, overly self-serious caricature of mental illness and PTSD. While SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT wasn’t the first time a murderous Santa had been depicted on screen (see 1972’s TALES FROM THE CRYPT and 1980’s CHRISTMAS EVIL), it’s the blatant cruelty of SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT that would inspire national outrage, ultimately putting an end to Santa’s theatrical reign of terror. Talk show host Phil Donahue even dedicated an hour-long episode to the shaming of the filmmakers involved in the production.
So why has SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT gained such a beloved cult following? It may have to do with all the film’s negative press. While director Charles Sellier was forced to quit directing and move into producing due to the film’s controversy, the film’s writer, Michael Hickey, reveled in the outrage, accepting every interview to discuss the public’s reaction to his script. In his opinion, had the film not racked up all its negative exposure, it might have faded away into slasher obscurity. As they say, bad press is better than no press.
The film spawned four sequels (one of which starred Mickey Rooney, who had led the protest against the original film) and has been adapted this year into a novelization by author Armando Muñoz. Through the years, the character Billy has slowly but surely worked his way into the pantheon of iconic slasher killers, and actor Brian Robert Wilson, initially ashamed of his involvement in the film, has finally embraced his place among the murderous stars, now making appearances in the horror convention circuit.
While the film may not be as nuanced or well-filmed and acted as 1974’s holiday horror classic BLACK CHRISTMAS, it isn’t quite as silly as the avalanche of Christmas horror films that would follow. It rests somewhere in a place that only the early-to-mid-80s could produce when the slasher formula was just being figured out but had yet to be overdone. At only 79 minutes, it’s surprisingly earnest and moves at a steady, intentional pace, wasting little time before the relentless massacre begins. For that, SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT makes for a highly rewatchable holiday tradition for naughty slasher fans year after year.
SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT is available to rent on most digital platforms.
