Santa slays and jingle hells: here's why Christmas horror films are the perfect antidote to the season | Paul Syvret

They can be silly and tasteless - and there's something suitable for almost any age and audience

A clown walks into a bar. Seriously. Bear with me a minute here.

The clown sees a Santa Claus impersonator propped up on a stool with a beer. The clown gambols across to sit on Santa's lap, and then pees his pants before shooting everyone else in the bar. He steals Santa's costume, ties him up, douses him with liquid nitrogen and proceeds to smash him to bloody pieces. Ho ho ho.