Sint

This Christmas, Board Up Your Chimney

Today's movie review comes from a movie that has been sitting in my Netflix queue for a couple years. Sint, better known in the US as Saint Nick, or just Saint, is not your typical Christmas movie. It is, by all possible definitions, a horror movie.

It starts out back in 1492 when a gang led by Saint Niklas loots and pillages a small town. Well, the townspeople don't take too kindly to this, and violently murder Niklas and his group. In the present day, the Dutch still celebrate Saint Niklas Day in much the same way that we celebrate Christmas now, but on December 5th. This year however, December 5th has a full moon, and that is when the ghost of Saint Nick and his Zwarte Pieten (Black Peters) come back and start killing children.

Only a few people still believe in him, and actively try to prevent this from happening. One such person is a local cop named Goert (Kurt). Much like in any horror movie, Kurt is made fun of for his beliefs, even in his own department. It falls to Kurt and a teen named Frank to stop Saint Nick and protect the down, and they are dogged every bit of the way by the police and Zwarte Pieten alike.

Overall, the movie is a decent watch. The production budget is was small, most noticeable in the blood effects, but it doesn't negatively affect the film much. There's not so much gore, which is good, but there's still enough blood spilled that those with weak stomachs probably shouldn't watch it. That also goes for children. The movie may not be rated, but this could definitely give kids nightmares, and potentially scar them for a long while.

The story was decent, with all but a few loose ends tied up by the end of the movie. My only real complaint is that the ending was a bit odd. But, because of this, it could leave it open for a sequel, though I'm not sure how likely that is.

It should also be noted that being a foreign film, Sint is not in English. However on Netflix, it is dubbed in English, which isn't too terrible. Some of the voice actors sound familiar, but I am not able to place any voices close enough to any major actors.

Sint is worth a watch, getting 6 ½ stars

If you are a fan of movies that may surprise you, foreign movies, or just horror in general, Sint may be your cup of tea. I went into the movie not knowing what to expect, and I was pleasantly surprised. I don't think it will ever be one of those must watch movies (at least not in the US), but it is worth at least one watch. Just remember though, this is most definitely not kid-appropriate. I'll leave it up to the discretion of you parents out there though.

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