Written by Jeff Rendell
Directed by Eli Roth
John Carver: "Sorry, Jessica! This year, there will be no leftovers."
With nearly every holiday that could be potentially mined for horror, I'm surprised it took almost this long for Thanksgiving to join the line up but here we are.
The motivation for the killer was made clear at the start of the movie. You've got a Walmart stand in experiencing the most violent display during Black Friday, resulting in various bustbups and the death of a woman named Amanda Collins (Gina Gershon). Some people really should just stick to ordering online.
A year then passed and there's a killer on the loose donning a Pilgrim costume and a John Carver mask and one by one, the bodies begin to pile up. It's quickly established the victims are being murdered due to the role they played the previous year and the deaths are pretty damn gruesome to watch. The fact that the market in question was preparing for another Black Friday sale only angered the killer even more.
The deaths though that we did get to see included a surly waitress named Lizzie (Amanda Barker), a RightMart security guard named Manny (Tim Dillon) as well as students Amy (Shailyn Griffin) and Lonnie (Mika Amonsen), a young woman named Yulia (Jenna Warren) as well as her father. Then there was the current wife of RightMart owner Thomas Wright (Rick Hoffman), who arguably got the worst fate of all the victims. Kathleen (Karen Cliche) really got the nastiest moment in the whole movie.
For every good villain, you need some protagonists and the close knit teen group somewhat made up for that. There was Jessica (Nell Verlaque), Gaby (Addison Rae), Bobby (Jalen Thomas Brooks), Evan (Tomaso Sanelli) and Scuba (Gabriel Davenport). Mostly they were decent protagonists with Jessica largely stepping up to the plate and being the one who ultimately brought down the killer's whole plan.
As for the killer - of course it was Sheriff Eric Newlon (Patrick Dempsey). His motive was at the start of the movie and Dempsey certainly leaned into his menacing side when his identity had been revealed. It's probably one of the best performances in Dempsey's career as he made for a very convincing horror villain who also got his just desserts in a fiery fashion.
- A sequel is already in development for a 2025 release given how quickly this film had become a hit.
- The idea for this movie goes all the way to the Grindhouse thing from 2007 where there had been fake movie trailers.
- Standout music: Arlo Guthrie's Highway In The Wind.
- Chronology: Present day in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
I really enjoyed Thanksgiving to the point where I'd say it was the best thing that Eli Roth has made in his career. The kills were inventive and gruesome enough, the main characters likable and Patrick Dempsey really can play a horror baddie so well. I'll take seconds please.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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