Directed by: Tommy Wirkola
Starring: David Harbour, Beverly D'Angelo, Alex Hassell, Alexis Lauder, John Leguizamo, Leah Brady
Violent Night treads early with Bad Santa vibes, only the Santa (Harbour) in question is the real thing. On Christmas Eve, Santa is weary of traveling the globe delivering presents and drinks away his sorrows in a London bar. After proclaiming this may be his last year as Kris Kringle, Santa summons his reindeer and flies away while vomiting on the hapless bartender who follows him up to the roof.
This Santa is profane, unkempt, and sick of being Santa, but once he receives communication from a young girl (Brady) who still believes in him that her family is being held hostage by a man known as Scrooge (Leguizamo), then it's Santa to the rescue. Not only can St. Nick deliver packages to the world's children in one night, but he can kick some butt. It turns out Santa is a Norse god or something close to it, although when he wields a hammer it doesn't cause the damage Thor's does, but he throws a mean haymaker.
When Santa tells Scrooge, "Santa Claus is coming to town", you either go with Violent Night or you don't. What happens with the dysfuctional family Santa is trying to save or anything from that point on is surely predictable, but the story isn't exactly meant to be anything but a clothesline to which to hang sufficiently enjoyable (albeit bloody) action scenes. Harbour is a burly Santa with a heart of gold buried under the cynicism. His performance carries the movie, plus the unusual idea of the real Santa playing action movie star. You have to wonder, however, if Santa's shenanigans with these terrorists throw off his schedule at all.
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