It’s that time of year when holiday related movies take over. Christmas is just around the corner and so the festive films have already started to arrive on various streaming services. Before then however, there is still the American Thanksgiving holiday to survive, and, more importantly for some Americans, the day that follows it – Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving sees businesses across the country take part in an epic sale, leaving consumers almost feral in their need to snag a bargain. This phenomenon forms the foundation of Casey Tebo’s Black Friday!. Starring Devon Sawa and Bruce Campbell, Black Friday! joins a team of toy shop employees as their manic midnight madness sale comes complete with a literally bloodthirsty mob.
Those that work in, or have a history of working in, retail will find watching Black Friday! especially cathartic. Everyone that has had to work any shift in a shop, but especially one during a massive sale, will recognise a lot of the selfish and arrogant customers that populate early scenes. As these characters turn into literal monsters, there’s a delightful amount of glee to be found in seeing the store staff butcher them.
The cast are an eclectic mixture of new blood and familiar faces, with Devon Sawa and Bruce Campbell being the highlights. With his role in the new Chucky television series, and a great part in Hunter Hunter, Sawa is having somewhat of a renaissance and the resurgence in his popularity is warranted. In Black Friday! his character of Ken helps lead his colleagues into battle, channeling his inner Bruce Willis during some more action packed moments. Campbell is as entertaining as ever, but his role is a little short-changed and hardcore Deadites (fans of Evil Dead) may wind up disappointed.
A big issue with Black Friday! is that it sometimes seems unsure of what tone it wants to set. Whilst presenting itself as a horror comedy, many of the moments are played a tad too serious and the humour doesn’t pay off quite as one might hope. The story and situation occurring in the shop lends itself so perfectly for a silly and over-the-top giggle fest and the restrained approach kills the sense of fun. On the other side of the coin, the more serious moments don’t land well either due to the outlandish scenario unfolding. Balancing a horror comedy is one of the hardest genres to nail, most films opt to pick a side, but Black Friday! flounders around in the middle, straddling both without fully investing or committing to either. If you’re after a point of reference for the tone, Black Friday! lands somewhere between Cooties and Krampus, with a touch of Grady Hendrix’s novel Horrorstör, making it a truly enigmatic movie to pin down.
Black Friday!
Summary
Krampus meets Cooties, but even with an indecisive tone Black Friday! still remains a great cathartic experience for those in the retail sector.
Black Friday! is out in the US now.
