The Overlook Theatre Reviews: Thanksgiving horror, Kristy

6 of 6 viewers "Liked" "Kristy" (USA, 2014)

Here's what the citizens of the Overlook Theatre had to say:

Book Wyrm - *Spoiler* - "This movie was good in that I felt sympathetic for the main character, the setting was great, and even the soundtrack was cool. It really reminded me of a type of It Follows but real life-esque. It also depressed me in that I want to go to an actual cool college instead of my lame community. Aside from that I liked seeing the vampire from Twilight burn up. All it was missing was a good Thanksgiving one-liner." - 5 Stars

The Berkeley Blazer - "This film has some really interesting moments and ideas, and the strongest thing it has going for it is how they achieved a sense of isolated malevolence. Sometimes I found myself so bored out of my skull I started conducting an imaginary baton to the score, but many times I often found myself riveted to the protagonists plight, especially her early scenes on campus alone. If you're not a fan of slashers/home invasion films, this film will not convert you, but if you are this is a holiday romp that is worth one viewing." - 3 Stars

Lord Battle -"Take Ti West's House of the Devil, mix it with Alexander Aja's P2, then change the holiday to Thanksgiving, and presto! You have Kristy, a film that we've seen before but with just enough tweaks to stay interesting and a holiday backdrop that really works. Kristy will definitely be on rotation for future Thanksgivings but I just don't see this film screening otherwise." - 3.5 Stars

Huntress - "Kristy mastered the art of creating unbearable tension and inserting jump scares tactically to work as a slight relief. It went in a direction I hadn't thought about but that I really enjoyed. And I appreciated that there were only a couple of moments where the main character had a MacGyver-esque genius, instead of being a badass the whole time. I also loved how little Thanksgiving was mentioned." - 4.5 Stars

Math Mage - "My first thought: "What if it's Christy with a "Ch" instead of a "K"? Is it still okay to kill them". A thrilling home-invasion film with many tense moments and exciting kills." - 4 Stars

Ice Giant - "While Kristy doesn't bring anything new to the table, it does established stuff very well." - 4.5 Stars

The Overlook Theatre Final Rating*

(Below is for after you've seen the film)

Even the most stubborn of horror fans couldn't deny that nothing beats watching a holiday horror film in its appropriate season, especially with a bunch of people on the actual holiday. The explosion of slashers in the 80's has left us pretty much covered for even the most insignificant of holidays (i.e. Memorial Day Massacre, Uncle Sam). Slashers use holidays as a backdrop to up the emotional ante of the killer's lore and as an easy marker for annual curses. The degree of how effective and or scary this makes the film drastically varies. A masked man stalking a young girl on Halloween is terrifying but also incredibly believable, a turkey puppet shouting obscenities on Thanksgiving is not. Thankfully there is Kristy.
 Thanksgiving as a modern holiday is thought of as two days off from work/school, where family will visit or be visited and all will eat their fill. Of course, this isn't true for everyone and in Kristy, it especially isn't for Justine, whose lack of holiday celebration actually strengthens the film 10 fold. Kristy is a film about Justine, who is the lone resident staying on campus over Thanksgiving break. There is no grand meal, family, or even any decorations in Kristy, which you become even more aware of during the montage of Justine walking the abandoned halls of her school. The visual storytelling is so strong during these parts that you can't help but sympathize with the strong juxtaposition of our national holiday.

On a side note, Kristy originally aired on the Lifetime channel during an October lineup. And with a little bit of internet research it appears Kristy was supposed to air as a critical look at the dangers of social media and how people are wrongfully targeted by internet trolls... Well maybe the last part is just me rolling my eyes at the poor girl targeted for driving a BMW but either way, Kristy will stand strong as a Thanksgiving film that will make you give serious thanks for not being alone for the holiday.

- Lord Battle

*Based on the star ratings turned in by character reviewers, others viewed and got to "Dislike" or "Like" but that does not effect the rating.