It's not what you think, like at all. If you go in expecting to be scared out of your mind, you are going to be very disappointed. When you think of a movie-watching experience with Krampus, think Gremlins. Will you have as much fun watching this as you did Gremlins? I would say so.
The Engel family is getting together for Christmas. This isn't the Tanners from "Full House" we're talking about here. These guys hate each other with a passion. There isn't five minutes of screen time before they get into an argument of some sort. When they're not arguing, the tension is always thick. Finally, things come to a head when the youngest Engel Max (Emjay Anthony) gets so frustrated that he rips up his letter to Santa and throws it out into the wind. Madness ensues as Krampus the Christmas demon comes with his gang of creepy helpers to teach the Engels a lesson about the Christmas spirit.
I'm always mindful of spoiling a movie so it will be a bit of a challenge to go into the things I didn't like unless you've seen it for yourself. Let's just say there were a lot of things that remain ambiguous throughout the movie and are never really explained. I'm not talking little things, but rather things that would make the film make a lot more sense. I also wasn't very fond of the ending. Not saying it was a bad ending, it was just...ambiguous. There goes that word again. Just not definitive enough for me to leave fully satisfied.
Despite these flaws, there are some great and memorable scenes in the movie. The first five minutes alone suck you in--a slow-motion scene of an in-store melee and a brawl taking place at the same time during a Christmas play. It's hilarious noticing all the little things that were captured here. Comedy abounds throughout the film with David Koechner leading the way as Uncle Howard. If he's onscreen, you know something crazy or off-the-wall is about to happen. The blend of comedy-horror works great as there are some truly creepy moments also, but nothing that will have you running out of the theater. I will say you might never look at Christmas cookies the same way again after seeing this movie.
Krampus is a decent movie that could have been great save for a few flaws. I give it a 74.
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