SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT (1984) MOVIE REVIEW

Silent Night, Deadly Night is a 1984 American slasher film produced by Ira R Barmak, written by Michael Hickey, directed by Charles E. Sellier, Jr. and starring Robert Brian Wilson, Lilyan Chauvin, Gilmer McCormick, Toni Nero, Linnea Quigley, Britt Leach, and Leo Geter. The film focuses on a young boy who, after witnessing his parents' brutal murder at the hands of a man clad in a Santa suit on Christmas, grows up tumultuously in a Catholic orphanage and slowly emerges into a spree killer himself. The film caused an uproar when released in 1984 during the holiday season, and has developed a cult following. Christmas Eve, 1971: Billy Chapman, who is 5 years old, his parents and his infant brother, Ricky, are on their way to visit Billy's institutionalized grandfather. At the institution, Billy's parents review the catatonic grandfather's records with the doctor, leaving Billy and the old man alone. With the adults gone, Grandpa suddenly becomes lucid and giddily tells Billy the terrible, secret truth about Santa Claus: he not only gives presents to good boys and girls, he punishes naughty ones. Not far away, a man disguised as Santa Claus robs a liquor store and shoots the clerk after he reaches for his gun. Billy and his family, heading home, come upon the man, his car apparently broken down on the dark, deserted road. Against Billy's terrified objections, his father pulls up beside the stranded man, who pulls out his gun and shoots Billy's father. Billy runs into a field, hides and watches as the criminal drags Billy's mother from the car and kills her. Christmas Eve, 1974: Billy and Ricky live at St. Mary's Orphanage. Billy, who is 8 years old, is reprimanded for drawing a picture of a bloody Santa Claus and a decapitated reindeer. Later, he sees an older boy and girl starting to have sex. Mother Superior thrashes the older children and gets mad at Billy for leaving his room. She asks what he saw upstairs, to which Billy responds, "Nothing, Mother Superior." Mother Superior then asks Billy if he knew what they doing, then Billy says, "No, Mother Superior," to which Mother Superior responds with a simple "Good." Mother Superior then explains to Billy, "What they were doing was something very, very naughty. They thought they could do it without being caught. But when we do something naughty, we are always caught, and then we are punished." She also reminded Billy, "Punishment is absolute. Punishment is necessary. Punishment is good." Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. HERE'S MY FAN PAGE   / themyersfan