Ah, the holiday season, a time of wonder and glee, a window for hope, optimism, and good tidings for all. Dive in a little deeper though, and it’s apparent it’s Halloween 2.0 when it comes to horror media. This phenomenon can’t really be called underrated (case in point, most everyone has seen Gremlins), but it’s still undoubtedly undervalued. In many ways, the season’s stylized offerings can be even more unique than their pumpkin-aligned counterparts.

While I certainly haven’t seen every film of the genre, I certainly have seen quite a few. In my mind, there’s only one way to rank them: on both the thrills and scares they offer, and how much Christmas cheer they can provide.

12. Blood Beat | Festiveness: 🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻

You’re going to have to read on if you want something more coherent. There’s rural Wisconsin, a strange family, a Japanese samurai ghost, and some Christmas decorations for good measure. While it certainly isn’t ranking high on either category, it does rank high for outright bizarreness. It’s perfect fodder for that next bad movie night.

11. Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker | Festiveness: 🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻

It can’t be stressed how much of a standalone film this is, so those feeling adventurous can dive right in. It stars Mickey Rooney as a toymaker with murderous intentions, and if that doesn’t get you ready to Christmas carol or build a snowman, you might need to check your heart size. It’s also got some pretty wild gore if you like your snow a little redder.

10. Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2 | Festiveness: 🎄🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻

You might think the omission of part 1 is strange, but the first 45 minutes or so of this movie is made up almost entirely of footage lifted from the first one. As such, it’s a great two-for-one deal. While the first film is a much more grounded and admirable effort at showcasing a youth becoming a murder decked out in Santa garb, this film amps up the insanity and zaniness to the highest degree. Strangely, there are many visuals in this film that you would never associate with the holiday season, but it’s an essential view if only for its many memed-upon scenes.

9. Feeders 2: Slay Bells | Festiveness: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻

No rating scale can really gel with this homemade movie or my love for it (homemade may not even get across how low-budget this is). Involving a mild-mannered family, an alien invasion, and a guest appearance by someone very close to the holiday, I can’t in good conscious rate this higher, but in a better, more just universe (maybe one that I rule) it certainly is given its rightfully deserved acclaim.

8. Silent Night (2021) | Festiveness: 🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻👻

The most recent film on this list is also one of the most difficult to recommend. As much a dark dramedy as a horror film, the family and friends gathering that it centers around is a wild ride, to say the least. If you’re expect something fun and light from your horror, this is not it, but it did have a very strong emotional resonance with me personally. There are some iffy story bits, but if you’re able to roll with some seemingly unintentional parallels to current times (the script started being worked on in 2019), it’s a pretty brazen effort.

7. 3615 Code Père Noël | Festiveness: 🎄🎄🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻

This French cult film plays very much like a less comedic and more murderous Home Alone. It’s really gotten a lot of publicity over the past few years, and rightfully so, including showings at Alamo Drafthouse, being screened on Shudder’s Joe Bob Saves Christmas, and even getting a 4k Blu-ray release. It’s personally not my favorite foreign entry on the list, but the sheer production value behind its winter wonderland needs to be seen.

6. Better Watch Out | Festiveness: 🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻👻

This is the type of film that didn’t really need to take place during the holidays, but it’s all the better for it. Differing from some of the more fantastical listings, this one has a real-world creepiness factor, as a babysitter and the kid she’s sitting are besieged by a home invader. Safe to say that there are big twists on what you’re expecting, with some very dark humor and social commentary all intertwined in the mix. It’s certainly not the most seasonally appropriate, but it’s challenging and unique in a lot of good ways.

5. Cuento de Navidad | Festiveness: 🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻👻

One of the best and most recent additions to my seasonal watches, this made-for-tv film from Spain is fantastic and even clocks in at less than 80 minutes. Starring a cast of kids in the 80s on bikes (well before the Stranger Things craze), who dive head-first into a big discovery, it’s best to go in cold for a real treat. That said, it’s not packing a ton of festive imagery outside of one super noteworthy usage, but it packs enough well-written dialogue and realized performances to more than make up for it.

4. Krampus | Festiveness: 🎄🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻👻

One of the more prominent examples of recent years is also one of the best. The legend of Krampus comes together in full effect, with excellent, practical creature designs and really effective comedic elements. What’s maybe most amazing though is it’s not even the best holiday-themed horror movie from director Michael Dougherty (that would have to go to Trick ‘r Treat).

3. Rare Exports | Festiveness: 🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻👻👻

This Finish film packs a ton of intrigue. Involving a mysterious mountaintop excavation to unearth something long-lost, it really goes far on the merits of its excellent cinematography. While it’s more interested in rewriting Christmas lore than presenting it exactly as we know it, it very much sticks the landing in doing so. Also, in terms of scares, this one should stay etched in your brain with some extremely creepy imagery.

2. Gremlins | Festiveness: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻

The less said here, the better.  The near-perfect mixture of family light-heartedness and a creature feature, Gremlins can serve as a great horror entry point if you’re looking for a more casual option. I’d go so far as to say that it could even be a good film for the whole family with the right expectations, as it’s not too explicit or overly malicious. If you’ve not yet experienced the murderous hijinks in small-town America for any reason, decked out in all the season’s tidings, it’s time to stop making excuses.

1. Black Christmas (1974) | Festiveness: 🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄 | Spookiness: 👻👻👻👻👻

The de-facto Christmas/horror hybrid film still reigns supreme. Having even preceded Halloween, in some ways it’s even more audacious with its scope than the Carpenter classic. The mystique and creepiness factors, built incessantly by horrid phone calls a group of sorority sisters receives over Christmas break, are as iconic as ever.

All the while, there’s not a Christmas staple that’s not on display or being tapped into. It’s directed by Bob Clark (who directed A Christmas Story) and if you don’t think that’s the most impressive filmmaking range maybe ever, you deserve coal in your stocking. It’s unquestionably the star at the top of the tree.

Any glaring omissions in the list? Leave us a comment. We’re always looking for the gift of more scares.

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