‘Thanksgiving’ Movie Review: Eli Roth Serves Up Giddily Gory Holiday-Slasher Fun
Photo from Sony Pictures
From Jeremy Kibler
True-blue horror fans have only been waiting sixteen years to get a feature-length film of Thanksgiving from director Eli Roth. The idea of a madman stalking and slashing on the titular federal holiday first sprung from Roth and screenwriter Jeff Rendell as a grungy faux trailer for Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino’s 2007 double-billed cinematic event Grindhouse. In less than three minutes, these filmmakers could convince any audience that their creation—the spitting image of a sleazy, exploitative holiday slasher flick—was actually made in the ‘70s or ‘80s.
While the genuine article looks nothing like the original fake trailer, this instead goes the throwback route of a slick ‘90s-style whodunit slasher (a scene during the town’s Thanksgiving parade instantly reminds one of I Know What You Did Last Summer), and that’s just gravy. Mean-spirited but not without a clear sense of giddy fun, Thanksgiving is a pure slasherama that achieves exactly what it sets out to do.
Thanksgiving is very much an institution in Plymouth, Massachusetts; we know it’s true because those are the exact words from Sheriff Newton (Patrick Dempsey, whose easily mockable Boston accent has to be in on the joke). When a riot breaks out ahead of Black Friday in the local superstore Right Mart (get your waffle irons!), townspeople are trampled to death. One year after the grim tragedy, teenager Jessica (Nell Verlaque), the daughter of the wealthy store owner (Rick Hoffman) and trophy step-mom (Karen Cliche), tries to move on with her life, even as her star quarterback boyfriend Bobby (Jalen Thomas Brooks) has ghosted her and their friend group. Before you can say, “that is not cranberry sauce,” the pilgrim-dressed killer in the historical John Carver mask is carving up those who rocked Plymouth last year and making sure there will be no leftovers.
A crowd-pleaser for all the sickos, Thanksgiving serves up a full plate of inspiredly gnarly kills (corncob holders, ouch), mostly likable characters, and a wicked sense of humor. Basting a victim and then sticking in a pop-up timer are twistedly hilarious touches, and have no worry, the trampoline kill from the fake trailer is still intact. On its way to unveiling who’s behind that John Carver mask, too many characters are left unaccounted for just to rack up the pile of red herrings, and yet, the climax is completely satisfying.
There seems to be an actual story and a group of characters to follow, let alone dialogue that’s often witty or just delivered with wit. Newcomer Nell Verlaque makes for a solid, root-worthy final girl as Jessica, a young woman who’s as resourceful and intelligent as she is attractive. Social media creator Addison Rae fits right in (not unlike Paris Hilton in the House of Wax remake) as a would-be victim but doesn’t completely register as Gabby, Jessica’s best friend. Milo Mannheim sells the part of Ryan, Jessica’s new boyfriend who may or may not be a douche (and the killer). Gina Gershon is slightly underused here, but proving to be an actor’s director, Roth does get more than enough personality out of his cast, right down to the smallest of parts like Amanda Barker’s attitude-heavy diner waitress Lizzie.
Coming from the man who disturbed us with a sobbing Heather Matarazzo being hung upside down naked and slaughtered with a scythe, Thanksgiving is downright mean but extremely fun. It’s gory as hell but still suspenseful with several well-crafted hide-and-seek set-pieces, one of which is freshly set in a high school’s cosmetology salon room and another involving the unlucky dinner table centerpiece.
There aren’t many other contenders for slasher movies set on the fourth Thursday of November—all right, 1987’s Blood Rage now takes second place—and Thanksgiving will leave you wanting seconds and thirds. Give thanks to Roth that we’ll all have a new Turkey Day favorite to add to the rotation.
Rating: 4/5
Thanksgiving hits theaters on November 17, 2023.
