Movie Marathon: The Top Three Films For A Subversive Christmas Movie Day

The ladies and gentlemen over at Most Wanted, the blog section of VoucherCodes.co.uk, asked a selection of film sites to come up with their top three films for a Movie Marathon day over the Christmas holidays. You know the sort, they're normally the days that happen because everyone has eaten too much pudding and going out after that and five whiskeys doesn't seem so appealing. Seeing as they asked very nicely and were offering cake, Film Intel put a thinking cap on and went to work.

There's definitely a risk over Christmas that everything gets, well, a little too 'Christmassy'. For Film Intel's list, therefore, we went in search of three films set at or around Christmas time, that deal with Christmas a bit subversively. They're a little bit nasty, they're not going to save you any Christmas cake and if they come down the chimney, it'll be because they're breaking into your house. This lot are perfect to start watching just after the kids have gone to bed, or are in the other room, playing with that dubiously-crafted doll-house.

Film 1 - Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

Start off fairly gently (you'll understand why when we get to the second two films) with a screening of Shane Black's tremendously witty Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Set around Christmas-time in Los Angeles, Black's black comedy involves parental abuse, Robert Downey Jr. relieving himself on a corpse, an unsolved murder, several shoot-outs and Val Kilmer's best performance since, well... maybe ever. Its hardly family friendly but it is wickedly funny and smartly directed and the Downey Jr./Kilmer/Michelle Monaghan triple threat are all stunningly well-cast.

Film Intel review: look out for it over Christmas
Alternatives; The Long Kiss Goodnight, Die Hard, The Ice Harvest

Film 2 - Santa's Slay

Santa's Slay starts with a cameoing James Caan and quickly goes downhill from there. It may not be very good, but the prospect of seeing Bill Goldberg as a murderous version of Father Christmas is too entertaining to claim this is completely without merit. The plot (something to do with the sport of curling, unbelievably enough) is complete bobbins but its a fairly gentle version of the yuletide horror, which will ease you in to the sub-genre in preparation for that which is to come...

Film Intel review: Two Stars
Alternatives; Gremlins, Rare Exports

Film 3 - Black Christmas (1974)

To round off your subversive night of Christmas, erm, 'fun', pop Bob Clark's 1974 slasher Black Christmas into the player, sit back and don't relax for a second. Clark's film (considered one of the first true slashers) is grim, claustrophobic and full of not-very-nice imagery. Its like Scream, but at Christmas, with occasionally even stupider main characters. Thank us (or not) in the morning. If you get any sleep.

Film Intel review: look out for it over Christmas
Alternatives; Deep Red, Black Christmas (2006)