He Knows

Cast View all

	Jessa Flux	Amber
	Lynn Lowry	Sue
	Julie Anne Prescott	Cici
	Shawn C. Phillips	Sammuel
	Jonni Shandor	Young Christina
	Zachary Meiser	Steve
	Jordan Mullins	Eddy
	Kayla Kelly	Christina
	Anson Days	Aaron
	Dakota Bruton	Vanessa
	Jason Crowe	Rudy Ledbetter
	Morgan Pyle	Stephanie
	Seth Hacker	Johnny
	Xander Goldman	Officer Steele
	Joshua Scantland	Justin
	Steven Morris	Jason
	Steven Hugh Nelson	Nelson
	Ricky Wilson Jr.	Nicholas
	Xavier Mikal	Gregg
	Brian Bowles	Sammy the Elf
	Joslyn Eckert	Party Girl 3
	Morgan Bow	Sweater Waitress
	Raymond Kester	Sheriff Raymond Abel
	Stephanie Riley	Marirose Elizabeth Carter
	Devon Lewis	Devon

Crew View all

Director	Steven Morris
Writer	Kermet Merl Key, Steven Morris
Producer	Brandon Benz, Phillip Bowles, Marcus Bradford, Shannon Covel, Anson Days, Diane Fraker, Jerry Hatcher, Harmony H. Herzog, Mark Hornickel, Kenneth Huber, Brian Ingermann, April Jacobs, Brad Jacobs, Kermet Merl Key, Marvin Maddicks Jr., Steven Morris, Rick Nugent, Anthony Presutti Jr., Stephen Satterfield, Jonni Shandor, Charles Solomon Jr., Derek Tow, Christina Tylicki, Rob Whitman, Ricky Wilson Jr.
Musician	Kirk Ashley Smith
Photography	Brandon Benz

Edition details

Personal

Notes

My quick rating - 3.3/10. The flick opens with a promisingly dark start seeing a young Christina witness the horrifying murder of her family at the hands of Sammy the Elf. Decades later, the vengeful elf returns to punish the naughty in a small Midwest town, and Christina (Kayla Kelly) must confront her traumatic past to protect her daughter. Unfortunately, the execution leaves much to be desired. First, let’s address the acting—or lack thereof. The performances suggest the cast skipped acting school entirely, with line delivery ranging from wooden to overly exaggerated. The self-aware quip, "We're not going to become another low-budget horror movie cliché," only serves to highlight the irony, as the film fully embraces every cliché imaginable. Technical issues further plague the film. Inconsistent sound mixing makes some scenes difficult to hear, and the lack of practical effects or creativity in the kills makes the horror elements fall flat. For a movie with a killer elf premise, you’d expect at least some fun or inventive gore, but instead, we’re treated to uninspired deaths that fail to stand out in the crowded slasher subgenre. Toward the film’s drawn-out conclusion, it makes a half-hearted attempt at storytelling, introducing a melodramatic twist that feels forced and unearned. The pacing drags, and the attempt to infuse depth and emotion falters due to the cast's limited acting chops. There’s one glimmer of entertainment that I though was a humorous moment from the “token Black guy” character, who subverts a horror trope to his advantage with a well-timed joke. It’s a fleeting instance of wit in an otherwise humorless and uninspired script. Overall, the movie is too long, too derivative, and too low-quality to make any lasting impression. With no memorable kills, subpar acting, and a lackluster story, it fails to deliver even the guilty pleasures of a low-budget holiday slasher. If you’re looking for Christmas horror, this one should stay off your wishlist.

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