As a young child, Billy is sent to the orphanage after witnessing his father’s murder and his mother’s rape by a man disguised as Santa Clause. His education is given to him by demanding nuns.

One day, he is old enough to make a girlfriend and obtain his first job as a clerk in a toy store. During a Christmas party with his colleagues, he drinks a little and loses track of reality. In his psychosis, he punishes those he believes to have been evil, dressed as Santa Claus and armed with an axe.

Silent Night Deadly Night is a well structured slasher in which the hero is also the evildoer. We sympathize with Billy at first but as the years pass, we start to witness his psychopathic behavior. Evil acts, in his eyes, are those which Christianity demands confession. The film utilizes this concept resourcefully. The second half of the film, however, demonstrates a flaw in the scenario. Billy doesn’t punish those that did evil, he attacks anyone he sees.

I expected more suspense and a darker atmosphere; I expected a mysterious Santa Claus that punishes children while traveling from chimney to chimney. This is not the case. This would better describe "3615 code Père Noël", a more recent French horror film. In my opinion, the initiative to try and dirty the ideal image of the goodhearted Santa Clause deserves attention.