Released on 7th November 1991, again straight to video, was Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker. Now this movie has no connection to the earlier movies featuring Billy and Ricky, and nothing to do with Initiation either. Although Brian Yuzna was back to produce.
And just to confuse everybody, Clint Howard has a guest appearance as a character called Ricky. Is this the same Ricky? Possibly not, given how the last movie ended. But if that wasn't baffling enough, we also get cameos from characters who have wandered in from the last film, Kim and Lonnie, played by Neith Hunter and Conan Yuzna again. I suspect producer Brian Yuzna was having a laugh here, and baiting the continuity cops.
However the weirdest bit of casting is the titular role of the toy maker going to none other than Hollywood legend, Mickey Rooney. Yes, the same Mickey Rooney who condemned the first Silent Night, Deadly Night film. Quite why he agreed to be in this sequel is a mystery. It has been theorised that the film he signed up for was just called The Toy Maker. Which given its lack of connection to the preceding four flicks is plausible.
Now the movie was directed and written by a chap called Martin Kitrosser, who also wrote Friday 13th Part 3 and Friday 13th: The Final Chapter. After this he would work as script supervisor on a little film called Reservoir Dogs, and has worked with Tarantino in every movie since, plus has done on to work on dozens more high profile movies and TV shows. And looking at this movie, you would never have predicted such a glittering career…
So then, what is the plot of Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker? It’s Christmas and a young boy named Derek finds a mystery present on the porch of his house. Before he can open it his father Tom, confiscates it and opens it himself. Inside is an ornament globe shaped like a Santa, which suddenly shoots out cords and kills his dad. Understandably Derek is somewhat traumatised and has been mute since his father’s strange death. His mother Sarah, played by Jane Higginson, takes him to a local toy store. But unsurprisingly Derek isn’t too keen on toys right now.
The store is owned by one Joe Petto, played by Mickey Rooney, and apparently it isn’t doing too well, something Joe blames on his young assistant Pino, played by Brian Bremer. Also in the store is a character named Noah, played by Tracy Fraim, who buys a ton of toys but takes them back to his hotel room and dismantles them. However more mystery Christmas presents start turning up at Derek’s house, who knows not to open them. And just as well, for the toys inside are distinctly murderous…
And I will leave the plot summary there, partly to avoid spoilers, but also because thinking about it makes my head hurt. For this a very odd film, perhaps stranger than Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: Initiation. I tend to think it is weirder because whereas Yuzna’s Initiation very much descends into a fever dream very early on, The Toy Maker plays out like a far more conventional movie, at least at first. There is a mystery as to who is making the killer toys and why they are targeting Derek and his family. And we get some fun sequences featuring a variety of rather odd toys attacking folks.
However the final act goes to a hugely bizarre place, and viewers over the years are very much divided on whether it is any good or not. Now, for those of you who noted the names “Joe Petto” and “Pino” might think you know where this movie is going. And to be fair, you are not wide of the mark. But believe you me, this movie goes somewhere you are really not expecting!
It’s certainly a unique ending, and you have to give the movie points for delivering something you’ve never seen before. But on the downside, the movie feels a bit disjointed and you can’t help feeling there wasn’t enough time or money to really tell this oddball story properly. As it stands, perhaps the ultimate judgement on this movie is the fact that this was the last in the Silent Night, Deadly Night franchise. There would be no Part 6, and indeed Christmas horror movies in general would vanish entirely for a few years!
However, in fairness that is probably not the fault of Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker, for most of the 1990s was a somewhat fallow time for the horror film. The big franchises which had dominated the 1980s had either finished or were petering out in increasingly low budget and low quality sequels. And the genre wouldn’t see a resurgence until the latter years of the decade which brought us hugely popular and massively influential movies such as Wes Craven’s Scream (1996) and The Blair Witch Project (1999).
But that’s not to say there weren’t any horror movies of note made, and it was only a couple of years before there was another Christmas horror movie. And one that, oddly enough, would also feature Christmas presents that bite back and killer toys! However this is a movie that is now much beloved and is well on its way to becoming a modern classic, for our next film is Tim Burton’s A Nightmare Before Christmas (1993).
Obviously this movie needs no introduction, for I’m sure you are all familiar with the tale of how Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, decides to take over Christmas one year. However what you may not know is that, the movie began life as a poem written back when Burton was working as an animator for Disney. He and Henry Sellick developed the festive but spooky verses into a movie, and for a time, the House of Mouse were interested in making it, but ultimately decided it was too weird for Disney. Burton left Disney and went to direct a string of hugely popular movies such as Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985), Beetlejuice (1988), and Edward Scissorhands (1990). And if that wasn’t impressive enough, Burton also had helmed the blockbusting Batman (1989) and Batman Returns (1992). And after all that, funnily enough, all of a sudden, Disney were interested in making A Nightmare Before Christmas again. Spooky eh!
However the fickleness of studios aside, A Nightmare Before Christmas is a wonderful slice of festive fun, which has the added bonus of doubling up as a Hallowe’en movie too. Although personally, I tend to see it more as a Christmas movie with some marvellous spooky trimmings. Now it could be argued that it is not truly a Christmas horror movie as it’s not terribly frightening, except perhaps for the youngest of viewers. However it is a movie that clearly loves all things spooky, and part of the fun of this festive film for a seasoned horror fan is recognising all the little homages and references to classic horror that are sprinkled throughout the film. And for more on A Nightmare Before Christmas check Commentary Club #40 which is all about this movie.
However we have one more movie behind today’s door, which sort of continues the theme of unwelcome Christmas gifts, and most definitely is about dark forces taking over the festive season. It’s a dark horror comedy from Spain entitled El día de la Bestia or Day of the Beast.
The movie opens with a little priest, Father Ángel, played by Álex Angulo, doing some most unChristian things, such as robbing a homeless man. However there is method in his madness, for we soon learn that the formerly good Father is attempting to become evil. And why? Well, he has learned that this Christmas Eve, the Antichrist will be born at midnight. And so, he is looking to infiltrate the world of darkness and discover the location of this nativity in black, and stop the Antichrist from being born. Along the way he will recruit a record shop owner José María, played by Santiago Segura, who is devoted to the heaviest of metal, and self-styled occult expert Professor Cavan, played by Armando De Razza, who hosts his own paranormal TV show. Can this unlikely trio thwart the powers of darkness and prevent the Antichrist being born? Well, you will have to watch the movie to find out!
The film was directed by Álex de la Iglesia, who previously had worked in comics before branching out into making short films. It was one of these short movies that got the attention of famed director Pedro Almodóvar, and with his help, de la Iglesia made his debut feature, the sci-fi action movie Acción Mutante. Day of the Beast was his second movie, and after winning a host of awards, established him as a force to be reckoned with in European cinema. Since then, he has gone on to direct a host of highly regarded movies, although many of them have still featured his trademark humour and love of genre fiction.
Released on 20th October 1995, Day of the Beast is a dark, bloody and often hilarious movie, with the quest to stop the birth of the Antichrist often taking unexpected turns to say the least, and our hapless trio have a great comedic energy that matches the pedal-to-the-metal pace of the movie. However, while there are many very funny scenes, de la Iglesia always keeps the horror serious. And so, while our unlikely band of heroes are often making fools of themselves, there are some very effective scenes that bring an uncanny chill to the proceedings, underlining the fact that the coming of the Antichrist is no laughing matter.
Day of the Beast pulls off that rare trick of making a comedy horror that is both funny but also delivers the darker goods. And while this movie might be a tad too bloody for some tastes, it is a very effective and inventive movie that deserves to be far better known. Which is more than I can say for the movies lurking behind tomorrow’s door…
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