Not to be confused with the 2019 film of the same name, this 2026 version of Unholy Night needs a suffix to distinguish it from the earlier work. The earlier take is an anthology, and the latest from freshman Michael Gabriele seems to riff on the idea of why hungry ghosts must be respected. Technically, the undead featured here are zombies, and since everyone knows from the title that this film takes place over the winter holidays, just why an Italian family looks targeted is obvious.
There’s a folk curse going on that has Gino (Marc Bendavid) targeted, and his family is fair game in a cat and mouse run around the block. With Nonna (Jacqueline Robbins) uttering death threats, slowly succumbing to old age, and threatening violence to the entire family, we should all worry. When Rene (Shailene Garnett) gets involved, she learns from her boyfriend that they are not alone. Just how much they do to help the neighbourhood sets this film’s tone.
The moans and groans coming from the elders suggest they are not entirely out of their minds. They are cognitive, which is a refreshing change of pace for movies of this genre, and apparently have something to say to their relatives, who are very clearly still alive.
As it turns out, Lucia (Toni Ellwand) had her own childhood trauma. She’d been tossed into the closet during the holidays when she spoke out of turn, and when she cites “disrespect for one’s ancestors” as a potential cause for all this, I’m curious.
The family needs to find a way to reverse it, and with Gino in charge of getting to the bottom of the situation, hopefully he has time to convince the almost dead to offer answers. There’s some unintentional comedy in the screenplay that works. As for the dread, aside from some grisly effects and a sudden loss of control of the mind, maybe the film is painting a picture of how we should help the elderly. As for what’s more important, the telos of this film seems focused on how to keep a family together rather than apart.
Unholy Night wants its viewership to think about it, and while this movie is no standard survive-the-zombie-attack type of work, I did have to wonder what kind of movie this ultimately is. One good thing Gabriele does right is making the family competent enough to deal with the threat. When united, they can stand and deal. When apart, that’s when things go terribly wrong. That doesn’t mean they all run away, but it’s more rooted in depicting a realistic threat than in being truly supernatural or impossible to overcome.
Since I’m not acquainted with how Italian families work compared to Asian ones, it seems all anyone needs is good nosh to keep some people drunk, and perhaps set them to bed. Unholy Night has some innovative bits that keep it from being your standard zombie film. I won’t spoil the details of the climax either, which turns the concept of the Christian apocalypse on its head, but for those wondering if Gino and his family can survive, it’s best to go see this film for yourself. This moment near the end crafts the most beautiful imagery any fan of gothic horror would want! Even del Toro could learn from it!
Whether that’s when this film makes its rounds on streaming come the right season, Unholy Night is a different beast compared to its earlier namesake, and that alone is a good sign.
3 Stars out of 5
Unholy Night Movie Trailer
