We grabbed our young Gremlins subject to monitor another Christmas horror before the end of the holiday season. Krampus (2015) is a dark fantasy comedy horror based on the character from Austro-Bavarian folklore. Find out if the creepy creatures in Michael Dougherty’s dark Christmas tale were able to raise our subject’s heart rate to terrifyingly high numbers.

SYNOPSIS:

A boy who has a bad Christmas accidentally summons a festive demon to his family home.

Test Subject: Bridget

Age: 11

Gender: Female

Fears: Coulrophobia, or the fear of clowns

Resting HR: 65-70 bpm *Slightly higher than our adult subjects*

Walking HR: 85-90 bpm

ANALYSIS:

The first twenty minutes of the film set a chilling atmosphere as the main characters were introduced. A stressful moment at 25:00 lifted our subject’s heart rate from her resting average to 85bpm as the ominous beast appeared and delivered its first menacing gift. Strange mysteries in the snow brought on several more spikes above 80bpm as we crossed the halfway mark of the film. But it was the chaotic third act that truly quickened our subject’s pulse as a villainous version of Toy Story played out on screen. The abundance of attacks left little time to take a breath and kept her heart rate elevated throughout the finale.

CONCLUSION:

Krampus (2015) is a wintry mix of horror and comedic mayhem. In a film well deserving of its PG-13 rating, nightmarish creatures abound to deliver haunting holiday imagery. The practical effects and inventive characters captured the essence of an evil Christmas. And while the numbers didn’t climb as high as some of the more adult horror we’ve monitored, the scares were impressive. The film is guaranteed to leave frightful images with the little ones (and grown ups alike) this Christmas. It can also help burn off all those gingerbread cookies in the process. Merry Krampus everyone!

Krampus (2015): Burns an average of 212 Calories

Gingerbread Man: 200 Calories

How many Fear Calories did you burn watching Krampus? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook