Krampus may be a festive film but it is a far cry from the usual favourites we know and love.

This is a comedy horror movie that will have the you clinging to each other in terror.

But is Krampus (15) worth a watch? Here is everything you need to know about it.

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What is it about?

Max Engel (Emjay Anthony) is a kind, sensitive 12-year-old boy, who cherishes the festive season so much that he disrupts his school's Nativity play to punch a classmate who dares to suggest that Santa Claus isn't real.

Max's workaholic father and long-suffering mother (Toni Colette), who cooks elaborate meals to mask tensions in her impeccably furnished home, are furious about it.

Thankfully, Max's German grandmother Omi (Krista Stadler) calms the situation.

Soon after, Sarah's sister Linda (Allison Tolman), her husband Howard (David Koechner) and their annoying children join the festivities along with alcohol-swigging Aunt Dorothy (Conchata Ferrell).

When a heated conversation over the dinner table culminates in a brawl, a tearful and angry Max tears up his letter addressed to the North Pole.

Storm clouds gather, a blizzard swirls and the cloven-hooved beast Krampus descends on the family home to teach feuding generations a harsh lesson in self-sacrifice.

Who is in it?

Parks and Recreation's Adam Scott plays Tom, The Sixth Sense's Toni Colette plays Sarah and It's Complicated's Emjay Anthony plays Max.

Other stars include Fargo's Allison Tolman as Sarah's sister Linda, Anchorman's David Koechner as her husband Howard, Two and a Half Men's Conchata Ferrell is Aunt Dorothy, while Mobbing's Krista Stadler plays German grandmother Omi.

Is it worth a watch?

3/5

Based on Alpine folklore that traces back centuries, Krampus immortalises a horned beast, who also makes house visits on Christmas Eve... to abduct disobedient children and spirit away their souls to the underworld. While Saint Nicholas spreads laughter and joy with a merry ho ho ho, this ghoul brings mayhem and destruction.

Writer-director Michael Dougherty and co-writer Todd Casey unleash this malevolent force on a suburban family with tongues firmly in cheek.

Krampus falls short of the darkly humorous delights of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas or Bad Santa, but it's an entertaining antidote to the sugary sentiment that sloshes over most festive films.

Anthony is an endearing pint-sized hero, whose act of frustration unwittingly sets in motion the carnage, and director Dougherty maintains a brisk pace, careening between each character's hellish encounter with the eponymous demon and his hench-creatures, brought vividly to life using mechanical puppetry, animations and digital effects.

Where can I buy tickets?

Odeon , Cineworld and Vue cinemas are all taking bookings for the showings.