Fantasia 2026 Review: UNHOLY NIGHT is a Humorous Undead Family Reunion

When the moon hits the sky and reanimates the corpses of your loved ones, that’s Unholy Night! The Jersey-born Italian boy within me chuckled throughout Michael Gabriele’s ode to dysfunctional Christmas dinners, and those red stains aren’t sauce or wine. Nonnas of the Living Dead, if you will. Gabriele captures the kitchen chaos of elaborate holiday spreads, while unleashing zombified ancestors on gawking relatives forced to confront generational demons. As far as senior-centric horror flicks go—which there aren’t enough of—Unholy Night is a nifty indie horror-comedy that doesn’t skimp on cultural jabs and grandmotherly gabaghouls.

Marc Bendavid stars as Gino, a humble paint salesman who still lives at home with his parents. On Christmas Eve, all Gino's brothers, sisters, and their extended families gather for a meal of seafood, pasta, and whatever else Mamma Lucia (Toni Ellwand) pulls from her oven. It’s a night of celebration, as Angela (Cristina Rosato) brags about another hair salon opening, but also frustration, as Franky (Olivier Renaud) roasts his brother’s lack of ambition. But, before dessert hits the table, an unexpected visitor appears: Nonna Pina (Jacqueline Robbins). Freshly unearthed after a funeral burial years prior.

In Italian, “Ritornati” roughly translates to “The Returned.” In Unholy Night, “Ritornati” it’s a folktale told to children so they’d respect their elders—that isn’t actually fiction. Gino’s hometown, influenced heavily by a central Italian-Catholic church, is overrun by once-deceased family members who don’t seem aware of their passing. It’s Gabriele’s way of commenting on traumas passed through bloodlines, with unfinished business transferring from the grave to living members. A grandfather’s war stories, a grandmother’s broken heart, neglected elders, unloved children, horse tranquilizers—pain never vanishes on its own, as Gabriele gives his characters a second chance to have the conversations they could never muster in life.

But, Unholy Night isn’t a drama like The Bear where everyone yells, fights, and moves on. Nonna Pina brings the thunder early on, when she executes two outsiders who simply romanced into the family. Wooden stirring spoons become murder tools, and Nonna Pina showcases her supernatural strength by tossing around spry, gym-fit victims. Matriarchs retain their hospitality even as zombies, shuffling around with tea and snacks, but these humorous tidbits do not override the ferocity of their attacks. Gabriele’s grey-skinned, rotten walking corpses are like ticking time bombs, because once their eyes glow a dangerous amber hue, another death is imminent. There are lessons to be learned from grave-emptying reunions, but the film makes sure these atypical zombies are still to be feared.

As Gino holds his family together, the unlikely savior who otherwise is made to feel inadequate, there’s a lovesick subplot with his back-without-warning neighbor, Rene (Shailene Garnett). Gino’s chickenshit behavior chased Rene away once upon a time, but he’s matured and is determined to win her back—which is the film’s weakest aspect. Rene feels like a distraction from the “Ritornati” of it all, as it's established, harping on inner-family strife. As the third act progresses, Gino and Rene chart a standard rekindling arc that culminates with newfound importance, but the impact never lands like a jagged tenderizer into a chicken cutlet. In building concrete “Ritornati” mythology, Gino and Rene’s schtick actually feels like a disturbance to the familial fearfulness of it all (for reasons in spoiler territory).

Understand, Gabriele’s Canadian production is a lower-budget affair. There’s more charm to the rambunctious comedy of Gino’s loudmouth family, whether papa Giuseppe (Ron Lea) gets scolded for using the wrong tablecloth to cover a (thought-to-be) dead body, or the thick Italian-Canadian accents. When Gabriele can, he bashes body parts misshapen and sneaks in some neat finishing moves, but other times, it’s a squirt of fake blood on a Christmas tree from a vile act off camera, or violence that hides what otherwise can’t be achieved by effects budgets. It doesn’t spoil what’s entertaining about Unholy Night, but you’ll need to be realistic about restraints here. The good thing is, Gabriele is able to work around limitations, especially during a few digital-heavy scenes that make the grade.

Unholy Night ain’t a title to fugettabout. It’s not as complex as the flavors of your nonna’s Sunday gravy, but does recreate the Italian festivity experience better than expected. I’ve got a soft spot for horror films that let the oldest characters go wild, because typically that type of turn is reserved for more youthful types, and that’s what Unholy Night does best. Meatballs, mayhem, and a family coming together lest they be pulled apart (literally)—this one’s for my Italian horror lovers out there.

Movie Score: 3/5