I Slay On Christmas

I Slay On Christmas is a holiday horror anthology shot on video that delves into a troubled man on Christmas Eve who escapes from his stress into a nearby forest. He then comes across four pine cones. Each cone presents a Christmas terror which eventually escalates into a real-life horror. Every tale is directed by a plethora of different filmmakers, including Phil Herman, Joel D. Wynkoop, Derek Braasch, Marcelo Fabani and finally James Panetta.

The opening of the piece employs indistinct imagery that pervades the visual aesthetic as it tracks the central character through the forest, feeling heavily inspired by Sam Raimi’s signature style. It feels like a homemade piece of filmmaking with its micro-budget and inaudible dialogue that is utilised inconsistently throughout, alongside a frustrating use of ADR. The shot on video (SOV) approach successfully accompanies the creepy and atmospheric tone of the piece incredibly well. One of the major highlights of the film is the pulse-pounding musical score, which creates a significant amount of tension that the rest of the feature lacks. For example, there is a sequence involving a chase directed from the point of view of the killer's weapon and the synth-heavy score is utilised astoundingly well here. Sadly, one of the substantial faults of the technical aspects of the piece is the camerawork, which feels heavily uninspired outside of minimal displays of prowess in sequences of tension.

The narrative structure and premise on paper sound intriguing and ambitious in its efforts; however, it's merely reduced to days of the week, which feel like a PowerPoint presentation rather than a Christmas terror with disturbing displays of violence and sexual desire. The narrative is unfortunately overly convoluted and confused tonally, with a plethora of clashing creative ideas which just don't stick. While the atmosphere is unsettling, the sequences of violence are ultimately ineffective thanks to how spurious they feel. Although, the practical effects are fun and utilised well with the minimal budget it has to play with. All the characters are demanding to engage with, thanks to dire performances across the board, not helped by the lacklustre screenplay and how unlikable they are. There's an absurd level of sexual desire and misogyny expressed in the central characters, which just comes off as forced into the narrative for the sake of shock value. However, the supporting characters, such as Jimmy the elf, who provide some comedic relief with their silly nature, are a joy to watch at times.

There is a severe lack of tension throughout, and pacing is totally uneven outside of flashes of brilliance. The narrative, unfortunately, drags to a grinding halt in its final moments. The tonal shifts present when switching from different Christmas terrors feel jarring and ultimately like a different film entirely. While the change in tone is refreshing with how repetitive the narrative starts to become, this is almost certainly thanks to having multiple filmmakers tackle the horror anthology aspect, which is a breath of fresh air but a detriment to the experience overall. The use of dream sequences is impacted by the poor use of a green screen background, and the use of live news being integrated is entirely pointless and offers nothing to the central narrative outside of the context of the relentless virus, which has spread. Finally, there is a podcast present where the screenplay attempts to employ political discourse around the current state of the United States, which feels entirely shoehorned in for depth that the piece entirely lacks.

I Slay On Christmas is a profoundly underwhelming attempt at the horror anthology sub-genre, with moments of excellence sprinkled in its formal choices; however, this sadly fizzles out quickly thanks to an unengaging narrative, unlikable characters and obnoxious levels of performative shock value. While the atmospheric aesthetic the filmmakers create is commendable, showcasing their unique voices in indie filmmaking, the result is a mixed bag of clashing creative decisions.