Holiday cheer is well and good, but what about those creatures from the night who like to invade our dreams and TURN THEM INTO NIGHTMARES? As ‘Krampus’ opens, let’s look at movie monsters who come out at the holidays.

JACK FROST (1997)

A serial killer dies on the way to his execution, then returns to life as a snowman. Naturally, he wants revenge on the lawman who put him away. The poster alone is terrifying enough but would you believe there was a sequel to this straight-to-video charmer? Of particular note is a shower rape/murder scene involving ‘American Pie’’s Shannon Elizabeth in her debut role.

RARE EXPORTS (2010)

A young boy learns that ancient Scandinavian legends paint Santa Claus as an evil creature who likes to punish children. But could it be that Santa has actually been buried under a nearby mountain that is being excavated by unsuspecting workers?

SAINT (2011)

A satirical horror film from the Netherlands that depicts Saint Nicolas as a murderous bishop turned pirate, it created a stir in its native land upon release. The former bishop was supposedly burned to death centuries in the past, yet returns on occasion to extract bloody revenge.

SILENT NIGHT (2012)

This remake of a 1984 thriller follows a very human monster who is intent on laying waste to all the "naughty" people in town. Beyond that, however, it's more of a mystery than the original, and takes a much more abrasive approach to the material.

SANTA'S SLAY (2005)

In this twisted, blackly comic thriller, Santa Claus is not a jolly gift giver but a spawn of Satan who lost a wager with an angel and had to deliver presents for 1,000 years. Now he's free of that obligation, and ready to make mankind pay.

THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS (1993)

Skeletal Jack Skellington is the bored pumpkin king of Halloweentown. He decides to conquer Christmastown and, misunderstanding the spirit of the place, becomes a monstrously unsuitable ruler for its inhabitants until he is set straight.

ELVES (1989)

Yikes! A woman discovers that her grandfather wants to breed her with a real-life elf. It turns out that the old man is a Nazi in hiding, and still wants to do his part to create a superior human race. Bonus points if you recognize Dan Haggerty, aka Grizzly Adams, as an ex-cop/store Santa. Sadly, it was never put out on DVD, but you can find it out there if you look.

GREMLINS (1984)

Lest we forget, Joe Dante's delightfully dark action-comedy takes place during the holidays and revolves around a Christmas present with unexpected consequences. These monsters may be little, but they're still deadly.

THE CHILDREN (2008)

Holidays are typically a time for families to gather together and celebrate the season, but the young ones in this particular gathering become afflicted with something frightening -- something that turns them all into little monsters who threaten to kill everyone.

P2 (2007)

An ambitious young executive works late on Christmas Eve before heading to see her family, but her plans are interrupted in her company's parking garage when her car won't start. A friendly security guard soon reveals himself to be the worst kind of holiday monster….

BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974)

An escaped mental patient stalks the residents of a sorority house where he once lived. But what monster is killing everyone? Could there be more than one, even? Perhaps more terrifying than any murderer, though, is Margot Kidder’s boozy, big-mouthed Barb.

SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT (1984)

A young man becomes obsessed with Santa Claus -- with good reason -- to the point that one day he simply flips out and begins killing people. In good conscience, we can't recommend this as a "good" movie, but in the canon of holiday monsters, it feels essential.