Holiday-themed horror films or holiday horror are a subgenre of horror films set during holidays . Holiday horror films can be presented in short or long formats, and typically utilize common themes, images, and motifs from the holidays during which they are set, often as methods by which the villain may murder their victims.[ 1] [ 2] Christmas horror .[ 3] [ 4]
Film scholars Chris Vander Kaay and Kathleen Fernandez-Vander Kaay explain the subgenre as such: "The expression 'adding insult to injury' is an excellent encapsulation of the motivation behind the horror movie obsession with holidays (aside from the obvious desire to brand a killer with a theme and costume that can be revisited many times within a lucrative film franchise). The holiday is a place for happiness and family... The horror movie loves nothing more than irony (except perhaps a good death scene), and there is very little more ironic than the fear and isolation of a horror movie taking place right in the middle of the festivities."[ 5]
The following is a list of holiday horror films that depict or are set during a holiday or holiday season.
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