The Big Picture

  • It's a Wonderful Knife is a festive slasher film that combines heart-warming themes with bloodthirsty thrills.
  • The film features a rich love story, strong LGBTQ+ representation, and a delightfully wacky tone.
  • Fans of Christmas slashers like Black Christmas and Silent Night, Deadly Night will love this gruesome and entertaining film.

While the Christmas season has long come and gone, it's never too early for horror fans to rewatch their favorite festive slashers. Last year brought quite a few new amazing holiday terrors to the genre, including It’s a Wonderful Knife from writer Michael Kennedy (Freaky). Now, after a successful theatrical run and a killer debut on Shudder, Wonderful Knife is stabbing its way to Blu-ray this spring.

The bloody release comes with a handful of chilling special features that include Better Off: The Making of It’s a Wonderful Knife, a Storyboards Featurette, trailers, social media spots, and a stills gallery. There will also be two audio commentaries. One with directorTyler MacIntyre and Kennedy and the other with Maclntyre and cinematographer Nicholas Piatnik. The cover art for the release features horror’s new favorite slasher icon, The Angel, getting ready to strike on the ill-fated town of Angel Falls with Jane Widdop’s Winnie screaming the night away in the reflection of the killer’s knife. That’s a striking image which feels right at home with other legendary films of the sub-genre like Scream.

What’s ‘It’s a Wonderful Knife’ About?

It’s a Wonderful Knife is a slasher twist on the Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life. Combining the heart-warming themes of that masterpiece with the bloodthirsty thrills of slashers like Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer, the film follows Winnie, who helped stop The Angel killer in their hometown. You would think that would make her a hero in the eyes of neighbors, but a year later, and everyone either hates her, is very cold towards her, or doesn’t know how to interact with her after the tragic events of last Christmas. This causes Winnie to wish she had never been born. Like the Frank Capra classic, she wakes up to an alternate world where she doesn’t exist. However, that also means she’s in a world where The Angel was never stopped and is still on the loose. She has to stop the killer once again while also trying to discover the true meaning of love and Christmas before it’s too late to return home.

While there are a ton of Christmas slashers these days, Wonderful Knife separates itself thanks to its rich love story, strong LGBTQ+ representation, and its delightfully wacky sense of tone. Kennedy made a name for himself with the incredible genre-bending slasher Freaky, but the writer doubles down on his distinctly entertaining style here. The kills are more gruesome, the blend of humor and horror is the gleeful star on top of this horrifically fun Christmas tree, and the blistering romance at the heart of this nightmare will melt your snow-covered heart to no end. If you're any kind of horror fan that loves films like Black Christmas, Silent Night, Deadly Night, or Better Watch Out, this is an absolute must-watch.

When Does ‘It’s a Wonderful Knife’ Release?

It’s a Wonderful Knife celebrates Christmas early when it comes to Blu-ray and DVD on April 9, 2024. Shudder has been one of the few streaming services that has been in full support of physical media, and it's always great to see one of their best films be added to a horror fan’s Blu-ray collection. You can pre-order Wonderful Knife on Amazon after watching the trailer below. The film is also currently streaming on Shudder.