Not everyone wants the comforting comedy of Home Alone or the schmaltz of Love Actually. Horror fiends who crave a slice of Santa slasher action, festive gore or merry mayhem are surprisingly well catered for. And to celebrate the cinema release of Krampus (starring Adam Scott and Toni Collette) we dig through the vaults for the 10 best tales of tinselled terror.

Black Christmas (1974)
Credited as one of the first ever slasher movies, Black Christmas is the original Christmas horror film as the members of a sorority house are picked off one by one by a serial killer. Though avoid the crappy 2006 remake.

Gremlins (1984)
Admittedly not very scary as mischievous mini monsters cause chaos in the small town of Kingston Falls. Funny, cute and cleverly directed by Joe Dante. A third outing for the naughty critters was recently announced.

Tales from the Crypt (1972)
It's all about the first segment 'And All Through The House' in this anthology based on the classic EC comics. It's Christmas Eve and there's a killer on the loose but Joan Collins can't call the cops as she's just murdered her husband.

Dead End (2003)
Probably the creepiest film on this list. Ray Wise takes a short cut on his way to visit his in-laws for Christmas, and soon the whole family is hopelessly lost and things just get weirder and weirder.

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)
Archaeologists find something mighty unusual in the Finnish mountains that gives a new dimension to the myth of Santa Claus. A clever re-invention of an age-old tale.

Jack Frost (1997)
Jack Frost is a terrible film. But it's terrible in just the right way, as the spirit of a serial killer possesses a snowman and wreaks bloody havoc on small town America. Cheap, trashy but stupidly funny. Not to be confused with 1998 Michel Keaton vehicle Jack Frost.

Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984)
Another early Xmas slasher, after years in an insane asylum after witnessing a mad man in a Santa suit kill his parents, Billy dons a Father Christmas outfit and heads out on his own murderous rampage. Caused a minor stir on release due to the imagery of a lunatic in a Santa suit killing innocent bystanders. SNDN boasts four sequels and a passable remake starring Malcolm McDowell.

Santa's Slay (2005)
So it turns out Santa is a Satan's son who has been forced to be jolly and generous for 1000 years. Those 1000 years are up and now he's back and he's mad as hell. Starring wrestler Bill Goldberg running around killing people in festive ways. Dumb but a lot of fun.

P2 (2007)
And you thought you're office party was scary. A young woman (Rachel Nichols) is terrorised in a parking garage after leaving her Christmas work do.

The Children (2008)
British fright flick featuring a mystery virus that turns children into pint sized killers over the holidays.

More Christmas horror films…