The Boulet Brothers' Holiday of Horrors is a snack-size Christmas treat

The Boulet Brothers' Holiday of Horrors

Fans of the Boulet Brothers (of Dragula and Dragula: Titans fame) may have been disappointed when they said on their Creatures of the Night podcast that their new Shudder special is nothing like Dragula. I assumed they wouldn’t be appearing in it all, since it is a series of four short films, but I was delighted to see them in all of their gorgeous, Christmasy glory when I started watching. They, along with a very creepy-looking David Dastmalchian, host the special, so we see them in between the shorts, much as we would see the horror hosts of Creature Feature-type series back in the day.

Their set is absolutely stunning, screaming bleak winter holiday season, and their costumes are (of course) absolutely beautiful. So, Holiday of Horrors grabbed me visually from the very start. I have always said that Carol of the Bells is the eeriest Christmas song of them all, and that’s the song the special opens with.

While I knew it consisted of horror shorts, with each written and directed by different people, these are REALLY short. The entire special is only 40 minutes long, meaning that each story is ten minutes or less, so even those with short attention spans can enjoy them.

Despite the fact that these short tales center on the holidays, don’t expect any warm, happy endings. These are all deliciously dark, and often quite bloody, perfect for a cold winter night.

What can viewers expect to see in The Boulet Brothers' Holiday of Horrors?

With the short duration of each story, I don’t want to give too much of a synopsis, so here is a very brief breakdown:

In Gaudete (written and directed by the Boulet Brothers), a family has moved into their recently deceased grandmother’s home, only to find that something evil is afoot. Look for Bonnie Aarons (The Nun) in this one.

Yeti or Not was written and directed by Dastmalchian, who also puts in an appearance. Three young women are trapped in the snowy woods trying to find out what has happened to their missing sister.

Akela Cooper (M3GAN) is the writer/director of Old Acquaintance, which features Tracie Thoms as a young woman who has to face her father’s demon. Bonus: Look for Dragula’s Abora in this one! Thanks to one of the challenges he won during Dragula: Titans’ second season, Abora was awarded the opportunity to appear in Holiday of Horrors.

Finally, Kate Siegel (The Haunting of Hill House) gives us her installment, called Down the Chimney. This short looks a lot like the old Rankin and Bass Christmas specials of my youth, and starts out as a charming little vignette about Santa visiting homes on Christmas Eve. But, remember, these are horror tales, and Santa finds himself in grave (and gross) danger. Trivia alert: Kate Siegel is married to Mike Flanagan (creator of The Haunting of Hill House), and their two children Theodora and Cody lend their voices to this one.

The Boulet Brothers’ Holiday of Horrors can only be seen on Shudder, so jump to it and get your subscription now!