As Halloween ends and people bring out their Christmas trees, Thanksgiving almost seems like just another day to have dinner.
The new horror movie “Thanksgiving” makes you appreciate the holiday more just a little bit. Director Eli Roth (“Hostel,” “The Green Inferno”) adapted the concept from a trailer he made back in 2007 for the movie “Grindhouse.” The trailer has long been quite popular among horror movie fans, getting resurrected every holiday season on social media.
The concept follows the long tradition of slasher movies mostly themed around holidays. These films, like “Halloween,” “Black Christmas” and “My Bloody Valentine” typically follow a group of young adults getting picked off one-by-one by a man in a mask because Hollywood loves to put hot people in dangerous situations.
Don’t get me wrong Roth doesn’t make anything new or innovative (he’s not Jordan Peele), but he makes a good slasher that soon could definitely become a classic like “Scream.”
“Thanksgiving” actually shares a lot in common with the first “Scream” in the way it pays homage to past films. It has its own Sidney in the main character Jessica (Nell Verlaque), and a killer with a holiday mask. Even the movie’s poster resembles the one for “Scream 5.”
Even though “Thanksgiving” follows the slasher formula, it has some major themes through the movie that kind of get you to rethink your view on greed. The movie begins with a Black Friday crowd massacre showing what greed can do to people. It’s a legendary opening sequence with some pretty creative deaths.
This Black Friday sequence provides the reason for the killer to begin killing as he tires to show how greedy people have become now, replacing the hallowed traditions of the holiday with their pursuit of the best bargains.
Roth brings good ideas to the table and plays them out in a slasher format.
As a student of the genre, Roth gets creative with the kills. Every character is killed in a new, graphic way, unlike “Scream” where stabbing is usually the only method of death. Each death creates new fears that you never knew you could have had.
The cast also does a very good job at being scared, and you can feel their connection like they are really friends. We’re also introduced to some new up and coming Scream Queens that have a future in horror.
While many people overlook Thanksgiving the holiday, I imagine this movie might get overlooked as well.
Its current box office is not doing it justice, and it seems people are already forgetting about Thanksgiving. I have a strong feeling that as soon as this hits Netflix, it is detined to become a cult classic, following in the footsteps of movies like “Bodies Bodies Bodies,” “Megan” and “The Black Phone.
