Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		3.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		2.5

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman December 10, 2022

Note: This film is available as part of Lionsgate's Silent Night, Deadly Night Collection.

There's been a lot of bandwidth utilized lately to deride so-called "cancel culture", but if anyone thinks this is somehow a new phenomenon, look no further than what happened after the first Silent Night, Deadly Night was released back in 1984. As some of the commentaries in this new aggregation featuring the third, fourth and fifth films in the series get into, the backlash was so extreme that the film had to be pulled from theaters, and it found its most significant presence in the exciting "new" technology of VHS. In that regard, all three of these "films" were straight to video releases, and as such they often are less than fulsomely budgeted and might not have the tippy tippy top of marquee value stars in their casts.

With heartfelt apologies to both Richard Beymer and Robert Culp (who appeared in Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out!), the closest the three films in this set come to "star power" is probably the manic performance of Mickey Rooney in this fifth at bat (at candy cane?) for the Silent Night, Deadly Night franchise. This is in some ways easily the most gonzo of the three films in this set, which is not to say it's an unheralded masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination.

Mickey Rooney is on hand as toymaker Joe Petto, who actually arrives somewhat late in the tale after a harrowing if hilarious opening vignette documents little Derek Quinn (William Thorne) being traumatized by seeing his father killed by a late arriving mystery toy addressed to Derek. If the name Joe Petto isn't already a dead giveaway as to a supposed plot twist, let's just add to the mix by saying Joe has a seemingly bone and/or wood headed son named Pino (Brian Bremer), who seems to have designs on Derek's mother Sarah (Jane Higginson). The story is overly elaborate and even tries to fitfully work in Kim Levitt (Neith Hunter) from Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation, so from a narrative angle, it's often an overstuffed mess, but it does probably have more outright scares than either of the other two films in the set, and some of the practical toy and puppet props are extremely inventive.

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films' Vestron Video Collector's Series imprint with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.33:1. As is typically the case with these Vestron Video releases, there's next to no technical information imparted about the transfer other than a generic "digitally restored" banner on the back cover. I'd rate this presentation as probably closer to the first film in this set more than the second in terms of the consistency of color temperature and general support for detail levels. Like the first film in this set, this particular outing has a lot of dimly lit scenes, which inherently offer some obstacles for fine detail levels (and at times even general detail levels). But a lot of this transfer has a somewhat jaundiced, yellow look and the scene in the hospital is rather peculiarly purple looking for some reason. In the brightest moments, detail levels can improve at least marginally. My score is 3.25.

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker features a fine sounding DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track. Little effects moments like the music box "Jingle Bells" on the ultimately murderous Santa toy sound clear with no distortion, and more "formal" underscoring by Matthew Morse also sounds full bodied. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Director and Co-writer Martin Kitrosser is moderated by Michael Felsher.


• The Best Presents (HD; 18:15) is an interview with producer and co-writer Brian Yuzna (who helmed Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation).


• Pino's Truth (HD; 19:59) is an interview with actor Brian Bremer.


• The Most Toys (HD; 13:25) is an interview with "Surrealistic Design & Effects Artist" Screaming Mad George.


• For a Live Audience: Silent Night, Deadly Night 5 (HD; 8:35) is an interview with executive producer Richard Gladstein.


• Trailer (HD; 1:17)


• Still Gallery (HD; 7:56)

Silent Night, Deadly Night 5: The Toy Maker Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This film at least tries to get back to the foundational elements of the first film by featuring a traumatized child, but there is so much extraneous material stuffed into this film it ultimately becomes a bit of a slog. Rooney is fun in a somewhat demented characterization. Technical merits are generally solid (audio probably more than video), and the supplements appealing, for anyone who may be considering making a purchase.