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Back this morning with a long overdue review of Eddie Lengyel’s Mother Krampus 2: Slay Ride. This film hit my radar way back in 2016 when we ran the initial trailer for the film. At that time it was being called Lady Krampus. It’s been retitled and is being marketed by ITN Distribution as sort of a loose sequel to 2017’s 12 Deaths of Christmas.
SPOILER ALERT: This review will talk openly about some plot points of the film. I’ll try not to ruin any major surprises but if you want to be totally spoiler free skip this until you’ve watched the film.
Mother Krampus 2: Slay Ride Synopsis
It’s Christmas time in Cleveland, Ohio and four young ladies are on the verge of completing their mandatory thirty days of community service. With only one night to go, they are required to make a series of in-home visits to the older and less fortunate. Upon arriving at their final stop for the night, they become introduced to a pleasant older woman who graciously welcomes them into her home for the evening. However, as darkness falls and the cold settles in, they begin to realize that there is far more to their seemingly innocent host than meets the eye.
Plot & Thoughts
The plot here is pretty straight forward once we get past the initial setup. We get right into the action with a sequence where the killer starts doing their thing. This opening sequence is shot beautifully and has a great intensity right off the bat. One thing that I always appreciate about a Eddie Lengyel flick is that the gore looks GREAT. The practical effects are done to perfection and when we get blood… it looks like blood. This may seem like common sense but I can’t tell you how often I watch movies and the gore just doesn’t look like gore. It’s really well done in all of Eddie’s flicks so I wanted to make sure to point it out.
The killer here is really well done played by Kris Smith. Her motivation isn’t revealed into WAY into the film in a sort of sloppy exposition scene but it doesn’t take away from the performance in the slightest. From the first moment we see her you know there’s something “special” about this lady. I wasn’t super pleased with the way the character is dealt with in the end but I’d had so much fun with the film to that point that I can let it slide.
The three leading ladies and their drag queen compatriot are developed surprisingly well proven by the fact that when some of them meet their demise I was mildly disappointed.
I do have to say that I would have preferred the film’s original title Naughty List. I totally get why they changed it and I may feel differently once I watch 12 Deaths of Christmas. There’s even a couple of times when the killer references “the naughty list” which were lines clearly left over from when it was titled as such. That said, if you didn’t know the title history you probably wouldn’t have noticed these lines and honestly they’re not out of place.
I’d be remiss to not point out the Cleveland connection here. I’m a Cleveland guy and it’s always nice to see my home town represented in films I’m watching. I love the fact that Eddie features locations in and around the Cleveland area. While I always support indie filmmakers I’ll always go out of my way to support the CLE!
Recommendation
Mother Krampus 2: Slay Ride would be a great addition to your Christmas horror collection. It’s got some great kills, a well developed cast and just enough sex sprinkled in to give it that 80’s slasher throwback feel. It gets a little slow in the middle but as we get toward the third act and the kills start piling up it’s a damn good time. I wasn’t thrilled with the final scene that was full of exposition and a bit of a Mary Sue out of nowhere but by that point I’d already made up my mind: this was a good time and well worth a recommend.
You can find more information about Mother Krampus 2: Slay Ride at the following links:
- Facebook – www.facebook.com/pg/LadyKrampus
- IMDB – www.imdb.com/title/tt4572700
- Read a review of the original at All Horror: Mother Krampus (2017)
Special thanks to Eddie Lengyel for giving me access to his film. I’m super excited to attend the world premiere of his next flick The Curse of Lilith Ratchet on September 20th, 2018. Stay tuned!
