Don't Open till Christmas

Did You Know?

• The film is believed to be in the public domain, as numerous entertainment companies have released it on DVD.
• Vinegar Syndrome released the film on Blu-ray on 25 October 2022.
• This was the only directorial work of Edmund Purdom's career.

Plot

A man in a Santa suit and a woman are stabbed to death in an alleyway by a man wearing a grinning translucent mask. At a party, another Santa is killed by a spear thrown through his head, dying before his daughter Kate Brioski. That night, a Santa has his face shoved onto a chestnut grill. A present reading "Don't Open Till Christmas" arrives for Harris, Powell receives a strange call from a man claiming to be a reporter named Giles, and a Santa is shot in the mouth.

Cliff tricks Kate into visiting a porn studio; after she leaves, Cliff and a model in a Santa cloak prepare for photos but flee from police, and the model encounters the killer, who lets her go. At a peep show, a Santa is knifed, witnessed by stripper Sherry Graham. Harris suspects Cliff, who was present at two murders. Powell finds Giles digging through his office; Giles suggests Harris is hiding something.

A Santa is assaulted by teenagers and runs into the London Dungeon, where he and an employee are killed. Undercover officers dressed as Santas are butchered at a carnival. The killer abducts Sherry, intending her as a sacrifice. Harris is taken off the case; Kate learns he visits Parklands mental institution.

A Santa is chased into a theatre where Caroline Munro performs, and his body is brought onstage after a machete stabbing. Kate tells Powell her suspicions about Harris, who has no birth certificate, but he dismisses her. She visits Parklands alone while the killer castrates a Santa in a department store restroom.

Production

The film faced numerous production issues, including conflicts between producers and director-star Edmund Purdom. Purdom, a former matinée idol living in Rome, became involved in 1981 while filming the slasher Pieces, in which he played the killer. He agreed to star only if allowed to direct. Derek Ford wrote the original screenplay.

Special makeup effects were by Italian artist Pino Ferranti, who had worked with Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci. Principal photography began in December 1982 with Purdom directing, but clashes with producers Dick Randall and Stephen Minasian caused delays, stretching production nearly two years. Purdom quit; Ford was hired to direct but dismissed after two days. Many scenes were reshot or cut due to Purdom's departure, and several characters were recast.

New scenes added additional deaths shot without the principal cast. A key character, Dr. Bridle, was removed despite actor Nicholas Donnelly remaining in credits. The final girl, credited only as 'Experience Girl' (named Sherry Graham in supplementary material), was originally a stripper present for a single kill scene; that scene was reshot twice with different actresses, and under Selfe her role was expanded.

Reception

Variety called the film "a poorly made horror picture." DVD Verdict deemed it "barely watchable," concluding that for exploitation die-hards, Dick Randall's productions offer blood, sex, and a few laughs. Hysteria Lives! gave it 1.5 out of 5 stars, calling it a "Christmas turkey." In a retrospective for Fangoria, Samantha McLaren noted it is narratively messy but offers violent festive kills against the seedy backdrop of 1980s London. Matt Donato, ranking 82 Christmas horror films for /Film, placed it at number 46, citing overreacting, awkward cutaways, and a Santa slaying fetish, but found the execution off-putting.