Halloween isn’t, of course, the only holiday in horror. The number of Christmas horror movies has exploded in recent years, and even Eli Roth’s joke Thanksgiving movie is now a reality. But for a long time, I had only the camp slasher classic New Year’s Evil for December 31. Not that I don't love hearing Shadow wailing the title tune -- and hey, where's its soundtrack LP? -- but sometimes you need a little novelty.
So I was thrilled when the 1987 British movie Bloody New Year crossed my path. From the title, I assumed it was another slasher, but boy, was I wrong! Instead, it’s in the reality-bending genre of, say, Phantasm, The Evil Dead, and with its hotel setting, The Shining. I think there's even an homage to Evil Dead in a brief scene when people are running through the woods and the camera runs as if it’s chasing them, seeming to overtake them. It's surprising in retrospect how few people have borrowed Raimi's Deadite cam.
On the first viewing, I also assumed that the filmmakers somehow had access to the location and built the script around it. That doesn't seem to be the case, although the director's commentary with Norman J. Warren acknowledges that the resort and its environs were a particularly lucky find.
The plot in short: a group of young people on vacation at the beach go to a funfair, where they stop some locals from harassing a pretty young tourist. They all end up on a boat ride, and the boat sinks, stranding them on a nearby island. Not noticing the overgrown "Keep Out" signs, they take refuge in a hotel that's decorated for the holidays, but is strangely deserted. The chaos starts small, almost inconsequential, with things like doors shutting themselves, but continues to build until things are completely out of control: objects flying, zombies attacking, and a table turning into monster, then back to a table again, among other manifestations.
The first weird thing about this movie is that it’s set in the summertime (July). That doesn't scream "Bloody New Year." However, the mysterious hotel has Christmas trees, and a festive ballroom festooned with a large sign: “Goodbye 1959. Hello 1960.” We eventually learn that not only were they having a New Year’s dance with the Flying Cadillacs (a super-’50s name), as depicted in the opening scene, but it was also screening Fiend Without a Face (1958)! So clearly this was a very cool place to stay.
Interestingly, the fiend here also lacks a face, since it's an impersonal force, not a being, despite sometimes taking human form. During the extended chase scene, where the protagonists are being chased by the hooligans, the guys take refuge in a funhouse. Among other backdrops, there are repeated shots of a creepy doll figure in a shirt that reads “Monsters are People Too.” Which is true! Although the cast are threatened by various figures, but what happened to the apparent monsters was a personal tragedy, in a world where nothing is fair.
In the commentary, Warren says that the best thing about working in the horror genre is that “it’s not real. Anything can happen. You make your own rules.” While I went into this movie expecting a generic product, it turned out to be much weirder and more imaginative. Highly recommended to watch while waiting for the ball to drop!
