KRAMPUS...your worst holiday nightmare

OK. So the holidays are around the corner. Soon would be time for christmas carols and lots of presents and family reunions. Holiday parties and snow. But what's all this joy and love for the season? Why it's called the most wonderful time of the year? Corporations have sold the idea of Christmas as an opportunity to increase their sales by pushing people to run to the stores and fight for the perfect gift. Families love the opportunity to share a meal with their love ones that travel just to bring presents and catch up under the excuse of being united for this great moment full of love and hope. And that's essentially the idea of creating a Christmas day. To remember everyone that we can't lose hope. We have to remember ourselves to love and value the people we love and care about us. A reminder that there is good in all of us and sharing with others is not only a celebration but a gift.So what went wrong? Well seems like everybody forgot all that and focus on their personal agenda, stressing out to give the perfect gift or host the perfect party but what about the real propose of having people over and share the best of you with them?

Not everything is about give, but learn to forgive and move on could be of more value. That's why marketing create Santa Claus, as an example of being humble and give before ask and get. To share and be humble enough to accept and learn from our mistakes to become a better self. But now days this is more like an urban legend, same as Santa Claus. More a pop icon than a real meaning. But as all good comes in different shapes, has to be something dark, another reminder for all those grinches that had lost hope and lack of love in their hearts. For all the joy and cheers that the big guy in red brings to kids and their families, there's another legend for all those empty, dark souls, and it's called "KRAMPUS" (2015).

Based on another Germanic folklore story about a dark santa that will come not to give but to take from all those that had lost hope in Christmas and it's real meaning. That had fallen in a dark path where life seems to have no meaning and real purpose but to feel miserable and complain. So, the same way that Santa will come to bring all of us that joyful and happiness to the children and the family in form of presents, this sinister devil will come with a full of servants and toys to help him to take away all the family members of those whose wish wants to become true. All as a reminder that hope shouldn't be never been lost. And this won't be a nice time to celebrate or be excited for but a moment to fight for survival and a time to meditate of what been done and what took us there. Not only when we start losing that we start noticing the value it had in our lives. As hard as it sounds most of the time we learn and overcome better from our mistakes and for the challenges than for the triumphs and the good times.

It's more common to find more and more people calling themselves Grinch for the holidays and christmas, avoiding all cliches that come with them under the philosophy or not falling for all this marketing created to sell an idea and push capitalism to its extreme. And they might be right in terms that at least the whole month people get such in a bad mood worries to finish all errands before the holidays to be able to spend them with family which is another motive to stress out. The idea of spending days with family ends in fights and discussions instead of making the most of it. A competition to prove who gets more and the best and show off in their own houses and school becomes like the next game changer of the year. Far from all those cute and innocent images of communities sharing a moment and enjoying others company, not matter if family or strangers.

 Sadly the movie is not as scary as expected, specially after watching the previews, as it moves from comedy to parody and then to horror, keeping a PG rated mood approachable to the family, but still brings good entertainment and assertive suspenseful moments and some other full of heart that won't feel into cliches or trying to preach us but to show how bad can things go if we don't do good, specially for anyone annoyed by the fact of elf singing nonsense and people trying to be friendly and happy even when life seems to be unfair and hard on them. All thanks to a great cast that serves perfect to this propose and an accretive direction for a screenwriter turned director that know how to manage an hilarious suspense. That's why this movie serves as a dark reminder for all that and feel like a fresh breeze in the horror genre and for this holiday season bringing the best timing to prove all said above and serving as a dark tale to bring the best of it. Remind us that we should never give up and lose faith even when things get bad and try to leave the moment and never put aside the people we love the most cause maybe tomorrow will be too late to have them back and show us the real meaning of family, a group of people united by blood and by learning to accept and respect each others not by choice but by the love of being part of something bigger than you and that's a success enough to cheer for the box office and for this season with a new motive to go through it and learn that behind every fake smile you will come across there's a whole krampus story along waiting for it.