Indie Carnage for Christmas Packs Plenty of Small-Town Queer Fright and Fight
Title: Carnage for Christmas
First Non-Festival Release: TBD
Director: Alice Maio Mackay
Writer: Alice Maio Mackay, Benjamin Pahl Robinson
Runtime: 70 Minutes
Starring: Jeremy Moineau, Dominque Booth, Zarif
Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here
This film’s review was written after its screening at the Chattanooga Film Festival in 2024.
At just 20 years old, writer/director Alice Maio Mackay has created five feature films, with Carnage for Christmas being her latest. An impressive feat for any auteur, the sweetest aspect of her career remains her dedication to making queer and trans centered horror films.
Carnage for Christmas tells the story of Lola, a relatively famous podcaster who returns to her small-minded town for the holidays to visit her sister, years after escaping. Upon her arrival, Lola experiences the typical transphobia she expected from the town, but she cannot also shake the feeling that something more sinister is afoot. Two missing people and a cryptic message at her door reveals that a legend from her childhood has re-awakened, ready to punish her for speaking her truth.
Small town queer horror Carnage for Christmas delights with low budget sensibilities and slasher mayhem.
Much like her previous films, Mackay’s Carnage for Christmas explores a different aspect of the queer experience by way of horror. This time, Mackay tackles the after-effects of coming out and what embracing your truth means to people who aren’t ready to accept it. Using her traumatic backstory as a parallel to her coming out experience, Lola’s return to her hometown ushers in a new element of danger, as she has broken the town’s urban legend by sharing the Toymaker’s story, the story of how she found the bones of a dead kid in an abandoned house. Her initial getaway to the city provided Lola the ability to embrace herself and move forward, but what does that mean when coming back home?
Coming back home, means living authentically, even when others push back. Lola’s sharp tongue and penchant for fearlessly putting herself in harm’s way pushes the plot forward as she tries to uncover the mystery behind her resurrected hometown serial killer that she is forced to confront now that her words have summoned him. Lola offers a fallible yet capable leading heroine, written to be sultry, cunning, and strong. She might get ahead of herself a bit too much, but Lola is never given plot armor to make it out of the stickiest situations.
Anchoring the film is Jeremy Moineau’s confident and mesmerizing performance as Lola. As mentioned by many of the characters, Moineau has an incredible voice that is perfect for podcasting, giving credence to Lola’s growing fanbase. Moineau waxes between assured private detective and empathetic friend and sister making Lola one of the most fascinating and exciting characters not just in Carnage for Christmas but in Mackay’s filmography.
Carnage for Christmas isn’t without its issues. As typical for a micro budget feature, some production choices feel rushed, or not fully realized. One scene will feature a captivating chase scene set to vivid Christmas red and green colors before shifting to an uncomfortably washed-out daylight scene. The whiplash can be drastic at times, but it does add an uncanny element to the small-town where even the daytime feels off.
The script itself does a great job of laying out this expansive mystery, but it almost gets too ambitious. Clocking in at 70 minutes, Carnage for Christmas feels stuffed to the brim with ideas, some of which do not reach their full potential. One might say that the Christmas and slasher elements don’t really occupy as much space as the true crime subplot, making the title feel like a miss. In the end, the flashes of brilliance outweigh the features of a limited budget. Mackay makes do without a lot, but still proves indie horror can be a force to be reckoned with when creativity reigns.
Admittedly, as a reviewer, I have found Mackay’s films difficult to cover. There is so much promise in a director that has a clear vision of what she wants, who is a champion of marginalized stories, and continuously makes bold, stylistic choices that make her films memorable. Furthermore, her stories are full of interesting characters and clever plots that distract from the uneven dialogue. The trappings of working with a smaller budget do rear its head but they are less noticeable as time goes on. It’s incredibly heartening to say that Carnage for Christmas is her best work yet. Fans of queer horror will find plenty to devour in this small-town horror film, and hopefully they’ll be able to unwrap it in time for the holidays this year.
Overall Score? 6/10
