Film Fests
[REVIEW] Fantastic Fest: ‘Silent Night Deadly Night’ (2025) Is More Nice Than Naughty—In Every Sense
Remakes are tricky business. Do you attempt to recreate and risk the whole endeavor feeling unnecessary, or take things in an entirely different direction and potentially piss off hardcore fans? Director Mike P. Nelson is no stranger to this dilemma: his 2021 reboot of Wrong Turn divided audiences and critics alike. With his Silent Night, Deadly Night reboot, he’s cruising for another bruising, taking a hard left turn from both the tone and content of the original film to create something that’s fun, festive, and maybe even a little heartwarming. It won’t be for everyone, but with one Silent Night, Deadly Night remake already in the books (Steven C. Miller’s 2012 effort), it’s nice to see something at least marginally fresh coming down the chimney—even if it is dipping into the stockings of other media across genres to fill its sack.
The Silent Night, Deadly Night Reboot Is a Pole Apart from the Original—and That’s Okay
Silent Night, Deadly Night (2025) stars Rohan Campbell as Billy Chapman, who, as a child, witnessed his parents being murdered by a man dressed as Santa Claus. In Charles E. Sellier Jr.’s 1984 original, this traumatic event, combined with the brutal discipline later inflicted on Billy at a Christian orphanage, ultimately leads him to don a Santa suit and violently punish those he deems “naughty.” Nelson’s remake strips away the religious element and replaces it with a supernatural one: Billy’s urge to kill and sense for who deserves it is passed on to him by the previous killer Santa in his dying moments, and that man’s deep voice now rings in his head, guiding him every step of the way.
If that sounds a little like the plot of Dexter mashed together with The Santa Clause, it should—and Silent Night, Deadly Night isn’t just borrowing plot elements from these widely disparate pieces of media. Tonally, Nelson’s film has a lot more in common with the sly, self-aware humor of Dexter than it does with the original film’s hard, tragic edge, and its cute central romance would feel more befitting a light-hearted Tim Allen movie than a Christmas slasher.
You see, in the middle of his annual killing spree (communicated via layers upon layers of bloody smears under each door of an advent killer), Billy meets Pam (Ruby Modine), an outburst-prone clerk working in her late mother’s tchotchke store. Initially only planning to pass through her small town on his way to his next kill, the nomadic Billy soon falls for Pam, ignoring the warnings of his own holly-jolly Dark Passenger.
Silent Night, Deadly Night Delivers with a Supernatural Twist
That total tonal pivot will likely alienate some fans, but for those just itching for some gory holiday fun, Silent Night, Deadly Night delivers the goods. It might be kind of a romance now, but that won’t stop Billy from burying the axe. One kill scene in particular descends into a full-blown massacre, providing a particularly cathartic target that will bring down the house. There are also plenty of not-so-subtle references to the original franchise to make fans smile, including the obligatory mention of garbage day, as well as a few nods to other Christmas slashers.
Nelson even tries to tap into the Santa suit-sparked psychosis that drove 1984’s Billy to kill. While the scene in question generates plenty of laughs, with the addition of the supernatural element, it makes little sense if you look too closely. It’s all a little less straightforward than the original, and the guiding voice in Billy’s head takes some getting used to, but if you go in looking for a good time, there’s certainly one to be found here.
Unwrap Silent Night, Deadly Night for a Killer Holiday Romp
For his part, Campbell leans in to the tongue-in-cheek material wholeheartedly, and it’s nice to see him getting another shot at an iconic slasher role after the horror community widely rejected his Halloween Ends turn (for what it’s worth, I thought Corey was the most interesting element of that mess—put the pitchforks down). His chemistry with Modine is compelling enough to keep the film moving even when it gets bogged down in the plot complications created by Billy’s quest to kill killers, and there’s something absurdly sweet about this romance between two broken people.
I suspect this fresh take on Silent Night, Deadly Night will pair nicely with Tyler MacIntyre’s It’s a Wonderful Knife, itself a fun, romantic twist on a beloved older movie. There are plenty of pitch-black Christmas horror films out there for people looking for coal in their stockings. The world is bleak enough right now—I’ll enjoy a sugar cookie where I can get one.
Silent Night, Deadly Night releases in theaters on December 12.
If you’re not watching Indonesian horror, you’re missing out. The region is producing some of the craziest genre movies around right now, thanks in no small part to the efforts of writer-director Joko Anwar. His latest, Ghost in the Cell, which celebrated its North American premiere at Fantastic Fest 2026, combines everything we love about the filmmaker’s work—supernatural scares, inventive kills, and gnarly gore—along with a strong vein of comedy and political satire.
What is Ghost in the Cell About?
Ghost in the Cell centers around Dimas (Endy Arfian), a journalist whose life falls apart after he tries to run a story on corporate corruption and mysterious worker deaths. Wrongfully convicted of the horrific murder of his boss, Dimas finds himself with a one-way ticket to Cell Block C, where he quickly meets a colorful cast of prisoners—the good, the bad, and the seriously nasty. Among the good guys, there’s Anggoro (Abimana Aryasatya), who is constantly getting into trouble for defending fellow inmates, and Six (Yoga Pratama), who claims he can see people’s auras.
As if Dimas’ situation couldn’t get any worse, his arrival seems to trigger a series of brutal killings in the prison. Bodies are showing up mangled beyond recognition and displayed in positions that wouldn’t look out of place in Hannibal. It soon becomes clear that Dimas isn’t behind the murders, which begs the question: what did he bring in with him?
Anwar Embraces Horror-Comedy Whole-Heartedly
Prison is a scary place, and Anwar makes great use of the setting, with the action moving from the dingy showers where predators lurk to the bleak cellblock where inmates are at the mercy of their captors and the cafeteria where rival gangs eye each other up with ill intent.
But for all the human misery contained within the film, Ghost in the Cell is ultimately a horror-comedy, one that isn’t afraid to lean into broad slapstick and quippy dialogue when it wants to raise a chuckle. The tonal shifts can take a little while to adjust to, especially if your previous experience with Anwar comes from his more serious horror outings like Impetigore. This might be a problem if the film wasn’t actually funny, but Ghost in the Cell has enough laugh-out-loud moments to make you forget about any whiplash.
Ghost in the Cell Is a Genre-Bender to the Max
Comedy isn’t the only new flavor that Anwar has tossed into the mix. In Ghost in the Cell, dance sequences and martial-arts fight choreo sit side-by-side with some of the most extreme gore scenes seen outside a Terrifier movie in recent years. Then there’s the eerie way the spirit presents before it kills (trypophobia sufferers, beware) and the extensive critique of political corruption, power, and inequality. It’s an everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach that shouldn’t work on paper, but under Anwar’s assured hand, it does.
It helps that for all the slapstick, the film lands a surprisingly earnest message, amplified by its vast ensemble cast. Dimas and Anggoro at times feel like main characters, but everyone in Ghost in the Cell has a big part to play, and that’s the point: in seemingly impossible circumstances, there’s strength in unity.
Ghost in the Cell Is an Endlessly Entertaining Blend of Goofiness, Heart, and Gore
If you’re looking for nonstop scares, you won’t find them in Ghost in the Cell. What you will find is a delightful blend of horror, comedy, and action that is apt to leave you grinning from ear to ear.
The film doesn’t skimp on the gore, throwing flesh and fluids at every surface. But it’s also charmingly goofy, with a cast that doesn’t take itself too seriously and a script that’s all too happy to devolve into a comedic dance scene when it feels like the spirit might strike. In every sense, Anwar is doing the most, and the end result is a film where there’s nary a dull moment in sight.
One of the great pleasures of attending Fantastic Fest is the ability to occasionally see movies that won’t be out for many months. That’s especially true with the Secret Screenings, which this year included a work-in-progress print of In a Violent Nature 2, a film that doesn’t even have a release date yet and made for a wildly entertaining midnight movie surprise.
While a few things may change between now and release, the cut shown at Fantastic Fest felt near-final. Here’s what you can look forward to when this sequel eventually slashes its way onto our screens.
Johnny Returns in In a Violent Nature 2
In a Violent Nature 2 picks up right where the action of its predecessor left off, while also introducing new aspects of the lore that slightly contradict or complicate what has already been established, a nod to the way that slasher sequels throw in new plot elements willy-nilly to suit their needs.
The second film centers on Alex (Lucas Nguyen), a quiet 14-year-old kid who misses the bus home from camp because his bullies have stuffed him in a trunk. Since his older sister works at the camp, he gets to hang out for the night while the counselors celebrate the end of the season. Unfortunately, an old fireman’s whistle has drawn the mute, hulking Johnny (Ry Barrett) to the camp—and before long, their night of revelry has turned into one of unimaginable horror.
Less Walking, More Killing
Chris Nash, who wrote and directed the first film, handles scripting duties this time around, with Nate Wilson—who served as first assistant director on the original—stepping into the director role. It feels as though Nash may have listened to viewers’ complaints about how much walking was in the original, because In a Violent Nature 2 takes a break from following Johnny on his lumbering mission. Instead, the camera largely chases Alex through the woods as he runs, trips, and stumbles away from the carnage.
This change is a mixed bag. Alex may be more a dynamic figure to follow overall, but he also makes some frustratingly poor choices, and his teenage moodiness makes him a little unlikeable. The first film also succeeded, in part, because it consciously played into how audiences consume slasher movies, with their sympathies shifting from cheering on the killer to rooting for the final girl when she triumphantly emerges. In a Violent Nature 2 feels like less of a meta-commentary on the slasher genre, though it still has plenty to offer fans of the genre, especially when it comes to kills.
In a Violent Nature 2 Takes the Gore to a Whole New Level
Mention In a Violent Nature to a horror fan and they’ll probably bring up the yoga kill within 10 seconds. For the sequel, Nash and Wilson attempt to up the ante—no small feat considering just how violent the first film was. It’s hard to top that particular kill, but In a Violent Nature 2 certainly gives it the old college try.
Shifting the focus from a single group of friends to an entire summer camp, even one that’s emptying out, instantly ups the potential body count (and harkens back to the slasher films of yore). Counsellors are slaughtered in droves, in ways more brutal than anything seen in the original film, with a few kills in particular sure to get people talking. It’s a real treat for fans of practical effects, and it’s great to see that even horror films positioning themselves as more “elevated” than the typical fare can have fun and get their hands bloody.
A Possible Set up for Another Sequel?
Minor spoilers ahead.
In a Violent Nature 2 feels like something of a response to the reception of the first film, removing what people didn’t like and piling on more of what they did. The result is a movie that feels a little less focused and meditative than its predecessor, but still incredibly fun. And with a third film heavily teased in the final minutes, it seems like we’ll be seeing more of Johnny in the near future. Based on the trajectory of other slashers, can we expect to see him fighting a psychic child next? Or—dare we dream—is he preparing for a trip to space?
Only time will tell. Better lace up your walking shoes.
When Does In a Violent Nature 2 Come Out?
In a Violent Nature 2 is slated to hit theaters sometime in 2026. Keep an eye on IFC Films and Shudder’s socials for more release information as it becomes available.
