Arriving in UK and US cinemas today is the slasher movie, Thanksgiving. Directed by Eli Roth, and adapted from Roth’s faux-trailer from the 2007 film, Grindhouse, Thanksgiving stars Patrick Dempsey, Rick Hoffman, Gina Gershon, and Addison Rae, and tells the story of a group of people who are terrorised by a masked killer.
In the movie, it’s Thanksgiving in the town of Plymouth, Massachusetts, and the local big box retail store is opening early for the Black Friday sales. However, what should be an enjoyable opportunity for customers to shop early and grab some bargains, soon descends into choas when a riot breaks out in the store.
Some customers are injured as a result of the riot, others die, and the whole thing becomes a tragedy. Social media users dub the incident a massacre and the Thanksgiving holiday is forever marked.
A year later, local business owner, Thomas Wright plans to hold another Black Friday sale at the same store. This angers many people from within the local community, including one mysterious individual who decides to act upon the decision.
Dressing as a masked pilgrim, this sinister figure begins a killing spree, bumping off anyone connected to the retail store massacre. Very quickly, Plymouth has a serial killer on its hands, with bodies piling high.
I really want to tell you that I love Thanksgiving, and that this movie is a fresh and funky new slasher, which is both playful and brutal. But if I told you this, I wouldn’t be telling you the full truth.
While Thanksgiving is fine in places, and I like parts of it very much (let me make that clear now), at no point could I use the word ‘love’ to describe the film, nor could I say it is ‘fresh’ or ‘funky’. ‘Playful’ and ‘brutal’? Yes, at times very much so, but not quite as often as needed.
When Thanksgiving first begins there is a sense the movie is about to deliver lots of fun. A huge dollop of satire is launched at the screen during the retail massacre, and things get off to a good start.
However, once the film skips forward a year and the main plot kicks in, everything gets a little bit bumpy. The pacing is all over the place, the story becomes very baggy, and the film never quite finds its groove.
When the masked killer pops up and the death scenes take place the movie snaps back into line again, and things seem promising. But unfortunately, either side of the blood splatter and violence the film flounders a tad, and at times the story starts to stagnate.
It also doesn’t help that none of the characters in the film are particularly likeable. So, when victims get bumped off it becomes difficult to care about who lives or dies, and this is a significant issue in terms of becoming invested in what’s on screen.
In terms of the kills, the deaths are enjoyable (if that is the correct word to use), and some of them are wince-inducing. One death in particular, which involves an oven, stays in the mind long after the credits roll and will be the scene every horror fan talks about.
The kills themselves could do with a bit more time to really hit the mark, as far too many of them are over too quickly, but director Eli Roth ensures they do pack a punch. Roth is known for gore, as seen in his previous films Cabin Fever, Hostel, and The Green Inferno, so it’ll come as no surprise that he delivers more of the same in Thanksgiving.
As for the masked serial killer, the pilgrim outfit is suitably sinister, and the overall look of the character fits in well with the tone of the film. Again, this is something which works in the movie’s favour, and is one of the parts which I like.
Can I imagine kids in pilgrim cosplay, lining up outside horror conventions with mini-axes in hand? Absolutely! I believe a new horror icon is born in Thanksgiving.
But do I think the movie itself is a complete winner? No, not so much.
The Scream franchise is still the benchmark when it comes to slasher movies, and all the way through Thanksgiving I kept asking myself, ‘am I having as much fun with this movie as I did with this year’s Scream VI?’ And the simple answer is no.
Thanksgiving shares many of the same elements as the Scream movies, and that’s where a lot of the fun can be found, but it doesn’t quite know how best to use what it’s got. It aims high, and is clearly trying very hard, but ultimately it falls short.
So, while Thanksgiving is OK, and some of it works well, it’s not quite as strong as it should be. A few tweaks here, a little extra cooking time there, and maybe it would be much more satisfying.
If you’re a horror fan, you will like some of what’s on offer, but don’t expect this to become your new favourite slasher. However, if you just want some daft nonsense to escape the endless Black Friday sales, then maybe this is the horror film for you.
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