Reviews for A Scary Little Christmas

“Be it It’s a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street to more recent classics like Home Alone and Elf, there is a certain ‘type’ of narrative that comes to mind when we think of Christmas films. Less common in our casual and scholarly examinations of such movies are those where themes of love, family and goodwill to all men are completely sidelined in favour of blood, guts and gore. It is the genre of Christmas horror—replete with satanic Santas, evil elves and lashings of holiday fear—that Matt DuPée focuses on in A Scary Little Christmas. Delving into over 40 years of holiday hellscapes, DuPée chronicles the subversion of the Christmas story through a comprehensive exploration of over 200 titles. This book is a must-read for those wanting to eschew the mawkish and heartily embrace the scary, the savage and the splatter.”—Associate Professor Lauren Rosewarn, author of Analyzing Christmas in Film: Santa to the Supernatural

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“A Scary Little Christmas is both an essential reference guide that exhaustively catalogs five decades of Noel nasties, and an entertaining slay ride through an ever-expanding sub genre of seasonal shockers. Horror fans are gonna love unwrapping this one.”—Dave Alexander, author of Untold Horror and former Editor-in-Chief of Rue Morgue magazine

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“Horror movies make the perfect counterbalance to wholesome holiday fare—it’s a clean, white snowdrift where a spray of blood appears all the more strikingly—and Matthew DuPée has taken a deep plunge into the creepiest and scariest films the season has to offer.”—Alonso Duralde, author of Have Yourself a Movie Little Christmas and co-author of I’ll Be Home for Christmas Movies

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“Matthew DuPée’s A Scary Little Christmas puts the ghoul in yule. It’s a fantastic look at the darker side of cinema dealing with the most wonderful—and evidently deadliest—time of the year. Psycho Santas, gremlins, Krampus and much more. DuPée delves into everyone’s favorite festive fears in an in-depth but accessible and fun way. With fascinating behind-the-scenes stories and interviews with many of those involved. If you can survive until next Christmas, you want this on your gift list.” —JA Kerswell, author of The Teenage Slasher Movie Book and curator of The Hysteria Continues Podcast

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“Thanks for your exhaustive study of Christmas horror, I'll be mining it for information--what an achievement! I had no idea there were 200 of them, I thought 80 at most.”— Joe Bob Briggs, Host of The Last Drive-in and movie critic of horror and drive-in cinema 

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“Matthew C. DuPée’s A Scary Little Christmas is the book fans of holiday horror have been waiting years for... DuPée navigates his cinematic sleigh ride with good taste and no blinders, willing to give anything a fair shot. He’s unafraid to call out the crap (“a cascade of subpar independent horror schlock”), yet also acknowledges “sometimes you need some cheese with your wine.” Where else are you going to get four pages of behind-the-scenes stories of Puppet Master vs. Demonic Toys? —Rod Lott, movie critic and Editor of Flick Attack

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"Author DuPée credits slasher Black Christmas (1974) for inspiring him to attend film school and eventually compile this comprehensive codex of yuletide horrors. DuPée quotes John Waters, "If you don't have yourself a merry little Christmas, you might as well kill yourself," and with that cheeky admonition, chronicles, in appealing, tongue-in-cheek style, "Psycho Santas," "Homicidal Holidays," "Killer Christmas Trees," "Zombie Holidays," and "Christmas Cadavers," among other categories, covering all aspects of Christmas horrors. This book is made for browsing; in short order, you'll find your faves...Fun chills for a chilly season." — Nancy Naglin, Videoscope Magazine, Winter 2023 Issue

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