Movie Review: Silent Night (2012, Anchor Bay)

The Silent Night, Deadly Night series has been a pretty formidable franchise since the first movie debuted in 1984. The series has never been quite near the Halloween or the Friday the 13th series in box office receipts as most sequels went straight to video - but the killer Santa flicks accumulated a fan base worldwide. Naturally a remake was going to happen. Sure there are some good remakes but many of us horror geeks (especially over 30) hold our noses at the thought our movie’s legacies being tarnished. Director Steven C. Miller ( The Aggression Scale) and writer Jayson Rothwell take the challenge with their re-imagining Silent Night.

It's Christmas Eve and bodies seem to be piling up all over for a small town in Wisconsin. This maniac has certain targets in mind - fornicators, snotty kids, pornographers and lecherous priests are at the top of his list. Finding out just who is behind these brutal killings is up to a young officer named Audrey Bradimore (Jaime King, My Bloody Valentine and Mother's Day remakes). With the help of Sheriff Cooper (played by the incomparable, Malcolm McDowell) the duo scope out the town so the killer Santa Claus doesn't slaughter anymore victims.

Movie Review: The Aggression Scale (2012, Anchor Bay)

Directed by Steven C. Miller

Starring Ray Wise, Dana Ashbrook and Ryan Hartwig

I'm just gonna start this review by saying I absolutely loved this movie. Director Steven C. Miller dialed up the perfect combination of brutal action and suspense with The Aggression Scale. A mob boss, (Ray Wise) has a team of ruthless assassins leaving a bloody trail behind them as they search for his stolen money. One by one they are going down a list and everyone on the list is ending up a greasy stain. When they get to Bill's name they assume he will be an easy mark. And although Bill was involved in stealing the mob boss's money, what the assassins didnt count on was the fact that Bill used some the stolen money to get his mentally disturbed son Owen, (Ryan Hartwig) released from a maximum security institution, so he could come live with his family in their newly bought home. Owen's Aggression Scale test scores are 99.5 out of 100. That makes him one dangerous kid, and the hit-squad's worst nightmare. After Owens parents are murdered by the hitmen, he and his mousey, suicidal step-sister escape into the woods, and thats when the deadly cat-and-mouse game begins.