Christmas horror has seen a real resurgence in just the last few years. Apart from the revised Black Christmas, we’ve also had two ‘psycho Santa’ movies in the David Harbour-starring Violent Night, and Joe Begos’ Christmas Bloody Christmas. Landing somewhere between the gloss of the former and the grime of the latter is Tyler MacIntyre’s It’s a Wonderful Knife. Taking its premise from Frank Capra’s evergreen classic and its approach from the new breed of postmodern slasher like Happy Death Day and Totally Killer, it’s an entertaining holiday treat, although not quite as original and exuberant as one would wish.

A year after saving her town Angel Falls from a masked killer on the previous Christmas Eve, Winnie’s (Jane Widdop) life has spiralled despite her heroics. On the appearance of a rare aurora in the sky, she wishes that she was never born. Her wish is granted, and she finds herself in an alternate reality in which the killer has been free to cut a swathe through the town for a whole year.

MacIntyre has certainly surrounded himself with genre pedigree: Justin Long enjoyably ramps up his slimeball persona from Barbarian to Trumpian levels as a devious spray-tanned mayor; cult Ginger Snaps/ American Mary icon Katharine Isabelle is Winnie’s supportive aunt; and Community and Assassination Nation’s Joel McHale plays both goofy and broken to good effect as Winnie’s dad. And it’s principally the cast, memorable despite broad characterisation, that holds the attention.

Jane Widdop herself is a winsome everywoman as the heroine; a variation on her doomed evangelical schoolgirl Laura Lee in Yellowjackets. We slowly see her regain the steel she initially showed in fighting off the killer, and her growing friendship with the misunderstood Bernie (Jess McLeod) is the beating heart of the film, with both misfits finding their purpose together as the George Bailey and Clarence of the story.

MacIntyre directs at a gallop, and there’s also some excellent costume design for its murderous ‘Angel’; white robes, and an opaque Perspex mask to contrast with the gouts of scarlet from his blade. However, the curiously dim photography means the blood doesn’t leap from the screen as it should, and with so much of the story taking place at night it undermines some good performances with the actors frequently swaddled in unnecessary shadow. It’s a strange visual choice for a film that’s actually characterised by its relatively bright message.

Stage blood is usually composed of a mix of syrups and colouring, and this rather sums up the gory but sweet tone of It’s a Wonderful Knife itself. While it could do with a tighten up in terms of both the laughs and the screams, this impishly violent and genuinely heartwarming movie is never boring. Michael Kennedy‘s script even finds a couple of mild narrative surprises through the dynamic of its central pairing despite it sticking closely to Capra’s original and much-imitated template. It’s unlikely to end up as a perennial seasonal classic, playing a little too broad overall, but a fine cast and solid execution make this an entirely enjoyable yuletide slasher.

Screening on Shudder now