What makes a truly iconic holiday villain? Is it an endless amount of quippy one-liners that has gainedJack Frost(no, notMichael Keaton)his fame, or is it the festive-themed scares that’s turnedKrampusfrom folklore myth into a horror sensation? Or can it simply be a man with a motive and a mask like John Carver inEli Roth’sThanksgiving?There are many holiday-themed monsterswhose festive flair has cemented themselves as seasonal VIPS, yet there is one five-inch fright which, unfortunately, seems to have been forgotten: 2005’sTheGingerdead Man,directed byCharles Bandfor the renowned Full Moon Pictures. A twisted play on one ofChristmas' most integral treats, this campy scare flick plays off of gingerbread cookies' reputation as a holiday favorite to create a disgustingly endearing villain. Like theChild’s Playfilms before it, this film plays with the possible chaos a bite-size killer can wreak to create a movie with enjoyably grotesque kills, surprisingly compassionate moments, and an overall hilarious energy that elicits laughs and cringes in equal measure.This synthesis of comedy and jolly scareshas catapulted similar holiday horrors into the spotlight, and it’s about time thatThe Gingerdead Manand its titular villain join them and gain the infamy they deserve.
This is the Real Cookie Monster
Before he was a Christmas treat,The Gingerdead’s Manvillain was Millard Findlemeyer (Gary Busey) whose murder of main character Sarah’s (B-Movie DarlingRobin Sydney) father and brother sets off a chain of events that leads to him being shot down by the police (and his transformation into our crumbly cretin). Sydney’s portrayal of the embattled young woman carries a surprising amount of heart as she struggles to hold her family business together despite these horrific losses. While her proximity to the other characters' messiness (namely her shotgun-wielding mother Betty, played byMargaret Blye)maroons our heroine into some ridiculous situations, her earnestness in these situations elevates the moviefrom schlocky mess to a camp classicwithin the first 30 minutes. This passionate performance punctuates the ridiculous horror of Millard’s new form — establishing a pair of characters whose clear opposition to one another is not only comical but who createa compelling conflict that expertly carries the movie.
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Who said the most wonderful time of the year couldn’t be terrifying?
Once the Gingerdead Man is officially reborn (through a mixture of the deceased Millard’s ashes and gingerbread spice mix)the campy mayhem promised by the film’s premisebegins in earnest, the miniature monster running around Sarah’s family bakery and lying in wait to strike at her and her loved ones as revenge for his death. Sarah’s genuine care for those around her is extremely evident, the young woman’s loss of her family members causes her to cherish those still left and develop a fierce need to protect them. Working in tandem with her love interest Amos (Ryan Locke), she struggles to not only understand who her baked assailant is, but how to stop him, eventually discovering just how personal these festive attacks really are. Sarah is granted a level of agency throughout the plot that too often evades women in similar movies; it’s distressing to see how in so many camp classics women are used as set dressing for the central man or as potential victims of whatever humiliating killing method the main monster prefers. While Sarah struggles in the beginning to find her strength, by the film’s climaxshe’s developed the fortitude to square offagainst the man (or sweet treat) who took so much from her. Her hero’s journey adds another vital aspect to the film and gives the Gingerdead Man a worthy opponent whose abilities and close relationships complicate his murderous mission. This ongoing battle not only makes his mischievous murders more impactful, it elevates the film and makes it more enjoyable as a whole.
The Christmas Season’s Favorite Cookie
Now, there is one major factor complicatingThe Gingerdead Manbeing cemented as a classic holiday villain: nowhere in the film does it state that its events take place during Christmas,or any holiday for that matter. While this could disqualify the crumbly character from his rightful spot in the holiday horror hall of fame, it’s that his mere existence is so representative of the season that he needs to be included. Because, yes, there are a myriad of Christmas-themed foes who rely on jolly methods to massacre their victims, using every opportunity to shoehorn more seasonal puns into their destruction. This practice has created so many stellar monsters, but it has alsoexhausted the use of these quips to genuinely scare audiences; becausewhen every holiday horroris making the same witty pun, is it even effective anymore?
The Gingerdead Manresists this exhaustion by letting its own imagery speak for itself. A gingerbread man is a universal symbol for the Christmas season and the film knows this, so rather than breaking down just what about the cookie makes it special, it uses that time to further detail the setting and characters being presented. As with many other exceptional classics, it’sthe characters who drive the plot forwardand use the film’s themes to fight back. With a runtime of only a little over an hour, this movie trusts its audience to understand the symbols being utilized and focuses instead on twisting their preconceived ideals into something truly grotesque, all while bringing attention to other elements like the importance of family and faith in your loved ones that further embody the holiday spirit. In a bombastic movie, this understated approach proves effective, pairing subtlety with rampant comedy andhorror offered by the film’s antagonistto great effect.
In a genre saturated with killers who use random motifs to set them apart from theblood-soaked masses, it can be hard for one villain to stand apart from the rest. Especially when it comes to holiday horror, a subgenre featuring so many iconic monsters who blend fear with festivities to create true terror, it’s understandable whyThe Gingerdead Manmay be forgotten. Its lack of direct festiveness,its short runtime, and even the film’s camera quality could be reasons to discount the film; but it is because of the ways it strays so far from what is expected that it deserves acclaim. By presenting compelling performances from humans and cookies alike, it creates astory that functions no matter the season it’s placed in, one that even without the association of its villain with Christmas would succeed in telling an unnerving and hilarious story. Its immediate association with the holiday is only an addition to this already engaging plot and deepens the significance of not only its killer but the story at large, the tale of a young woman fighting to keep her family safe from a horrifyingly tasty creature. This, plus a killer whoseunique spin on lethalityputs it above so many other basic monsters who graspthe most obvious elements to make themselves scary? This all makesThe Gingerdead Mana hidden gem of the genre that deserves the recognition it has more than earned.
The Gingerdead Manis available to stream on Shudder in the U.S.
