Holiday horror: sometimes good, sometimes bad, but most of the time, it's at least entertaining. There is a wealth of holiday-themed horror out there, and not just the ones centered around Halloween. They always provide a fun time during the spooky season.
If you enjoy horror set on any holiday at all, read on to get a few recommendations.
1. The Phantom Carriage (New Year's Eve)
In this silent 1921 movie, David Holm portrays an alcoholic who meets the rider of Death's carriage and is made to reflect on past mistakes and regrets. This movie broke many barriers with its practical effects and the structure of its narrative and flashbacks. It significantly influenced director Ingmar Bergman and Stanley Kurbick's The Shining. This movie is atmospheric and dread-inducing in many scenes. If you don't mind the fact that it's silent and love a spooky story, this is for you.
2. My Bloody Valentine (Valentine's Day)
This standalone Canadian slasher from 1981 manages to balance the sweetness of the holiday and the horror, misery, and pain of the killer, as well as featuring a truly creepy setting in a coal mine. The plot focuses on a small town where a mine once blew up on Valentine's Day due to the negligence of those in charge.
The sole survivor went insane after being trapped down there and subsequently went on a vengeful killing spree that Valentine's Day, leaving a note warning the town to never hold another dance, or the same thing would happen again. The movie takes place 25 years later, and the town is rebelling against the killer's mandate for the first time in two decades. As they prepare for the festivities, the bodies begin piling up in all sorts of gruesome ways.
3. Slaughter High (April Fool's Day)
In this underrated slasher full of twists, a group of friends gather at a high school reunion, a decade after graduation and a prank that left one of their classmates brutally maimed. But what is supposed to be a good time quickly descends into mayhem and murder when they realize that not only are they the sole people invited, but the school is abandoned and in need of repairs.
They decide to break in and party anyway, not knowing that the janitor is dead and that someone is waiting for them in the shadows. This one was met with many positive reviews at the time and it is still regarded positively by many slasher fans, thanks to the very entertaining 91 minutes that earned it its spot on the cult slashers list.
4. I Know What You Did Last Summer (Fourth of July)
A '90s classic in the vein of Scream this script was also penned by Kevin Williamson and based on the book of the same name - though the plot varies - by Lois Duncan. After accidentally running someone over and agreeing to throw the body into the ocean, four teens get more than they bargained for when they realize the person is still alive as they are disposing of the body.
Almost exactly a year to the date - July 4th - the four teens are menaced by threats, among them a note informing them that the sender knows what they did the summer before, and is clearly out for revenge. IKWYDLS is a very fun time if you enjoy non-gory slashers and/or a blend of thriller and comedy. It also influenced many horror movies that came after it in this regard, and the movie itself was influenced by multiple slashers from the 80s, in particular, Prom Night starring Jamie Lee Curtis, as well as the urban legend "The Hook."
5. Black Christmas (Christmas)
There are quite a lot of Christmas-themed horror movies, but to many, the one that reigns supreme over them all is Bob Clark's 1974 classic, Black Christmas, which centers on a sorority house being menaced over the phone by what appears to be a demented man. Little do the girls know that he is actually already inside the house and calling from upstairs.
There is no mistaking the influence this movie had on countless others since. It is credited as being one of the first slashers and one of the first movies to ever utilize the "the caller is in the house, the calls are coming from inside the house" trope.
6. Hell Fest (Halloween)
John Carpenter's 1978 aptly titled Halloween is a masterpiece and there is no denying that. But, if you are looking for a Halloween-themed movie that isn't Halloween or Trick R Treat, you could do a lot worse than checking out Hell Fest.
Clocking in at just 89 minutes, Hell Fest focuses on a group of young people who attend a traveling horror theme park on Halloween night. What starts out as a fun romp through the park quickly descends into murder and mayhem, when it clicks with them that someone attending the attraction has a very different idea of fun - killing people amidst the attractions. With taut pacing, classic slasher vibes, and Tony Todd in a minor appearance, this one is a whirlwind of a ride that never feels boring.