← Back to Directory
Santastein
Movie

Santastein

2023 • Comedy, Horror

Woke Score
3
out of 10

Plot

When Max Causey was six, he accidentally killed Santa. 12 years later, Max rectifies his mistake by resurrecting him, but soon realizes the creature he created is a bloodthirsty killer and it's headed right to his friend's Christm...

Overall Series Review

Santastein is a low-budget, holiday-themed horror-comedy that borrows heavily from the classic Frankenstein tale, replacing the mad scientist with a guilt-ridden teenager and the creature with a resurrected, bloodthirsty Santa Claus. The movie follows Max Causey, who accidentally killed the real Santa as a child, and his friend Paige, as they work to bring him back to life using a patchwork body and Santa’s preserved brain. Their experiment succeeds, but the creature that emerges is a feral, mindless killer who targets the town's Christmas party. The film leans into B-movie tropes, focusing on inventive, cheesy gore and slasher-style action rather than deep thematic exploration. The plot's main function is to set up a series of escalating kills and darkly comedic situations, maintaining a self-aware, campy tone throughout.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics2/10

Characters are defined by their roles in the horror plot (scientist, friend, slasher monster, victims) and not by an intersectional hierarchy. The focus remains on Max's attempt to atone for his childhood mistake. The narrative does not lecture on privilege, and casting choices are not presented as a political statement on diversity or the vilification of any specific group.

Oikophobia6/10

The film centers on the desecration of a major Western cultural icon and tradition: Santa Claus and Christmas. The premise involves the violent death of Saint Nick and his subsequent resurrection as a mindless, monstrous killer. While the tone is parody and horror-comedy, the core action is the deconstruction and defilement of a central heritage figure, which is a literal attack on a beloved cultural institution.

Feminism3/10

The main female character, Paige, functions as the male protagonist's intelligent, competent lab partner who helps perfect the resurrection experiment. She is portrayed as a capable co-creator of the monster. This depiction grants her competency without resorting to an overtly political 'Girl Boss' trope, nor is there a central theme dedicated to the explicit emasculation of men or anti-natalist messaging.

LGBTQ+1/10

The narrative focuses entirely on the holiday slasher/Frankenstein parody. Sexual identity and orientation are not central to the plot or character definitions. The structure is normative, and the core themes revolve around scientific hubris and slasher carnage, avoiding overt discussion or promotion of gender ideology or the deconstruction of the nuclear family.

Anti-Theism4/10

The film is hostile toward the *mythological* and *commercial* figure of Santa Claus, turning him into a monster. It does not directly target or vilify traditional religion, specifically Christianity, or its institutions. The focus is on a secularized holiday figure, although the theme of resurrecting the dead through 'forbidden' science plays on traditional moral boundaries. Morality is less objective truth and more a consequence of the main character's action and regret.