Patrick Dempsey's Thanksgiving Horror Movie Is Worth Revisiting This Holiday Season

Eli Roth's 2023 slasher flick "Thanksgiving" follows various citizens of Plymouth, Massachusetts, as they find themselves being targeted by a killer dressed as the famed Pilgrim John Carver in the lead-up to the titular holiday. Realizing that these murders are related to a Black Friday trampling incident from the previous year (which led to three people dying), it falls to Plymouth's sheriff, Eric Newlon (Patrick Dempsey), to figure out who's been taking some Turkey Day-related revenge.

There aren't too many scary flicks centered around this particular holiday, but Roth's film has now joined the modest pantheon of Thanksgiving horror movies that includes Brad F. Grinter's schlock classic "Blood Freak," the utterly absurd "ThanksKilling," the pointed anticapitalist flick "Black Friday," and Oliver Blackburn's "Kristy." Indeed, Roth's "Thanksgiving" is the perfect horror movie to watch this November, or any November, really. Like most of his other R-rated offerings, its gore is gleefully over the top, and there's gallows humor present throughout.

"Thanksgiving" began its life as a fake trailer that Roth directed for 2007's two-in-one "Grindhouse," itself an attempt by directors Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino to recreate the experience of going to a rundown grindhouse double feature circa the 1970s or '80s. They each helmed one down-and-dirty B-movie, giving them fake film scratches and print wear to boot. The program also featured a brief reel of previews for non-existent B-movies, one of which was the gory slasher "Thanksgiving." It took Roth 16 years, but he later expanded that fake promo into a real feature film. Now, it's appointment holiday viewing.

"Thanksgiving" was, by dint of its novelty, something of a hit. On a budget of only $15 million, it made $46.6 million at the box office and, perhaps surprisingly, earned pretty good reviews. Not only that, "Thanksgiving" also has a higher critical approval score on Rotten Tomatoes than any of Eli Roth's other feature-length directorial efforts, among them the mostly well-received "The House with a Clock in Its Walls" and the critically lambasted bomb "Borderlands."

"Thanksgiving" seemingly got a lot of mileage from its creative kills. One victim, for instance, is murdered, cooked, trussed up like a turkey, and served at a table surrounded by hostages and victims. (This kill is featured in Roth's original fake trailer as well.) In addition, "Thanksgiving" features the kind of fun, splattery deaths that slasher fans crave, among them a decapitation, a disemboweling, and a trampoline stabbing. 

Meanwhile, Patrick Dempsey's character is crucial to the movie's central plot, which makes sense, seeing as the actor is the film's big celebrity "get." Pop singer Addison Rae, Nell Verlaque, Jalen Thomas Brooks (aka Mateo from "The Pitt"), and Milo Manheim round out the cast, with Gina Gershon joining them in a small role.

The Black Friday trampling might make one think that "Thanksgiving" is constructed as a pointed anti-shopping satire, lampooning the bizarreness that takes place at many retail outlets the day after Thanksgiving. Roth, however, is more keen on dark humor and gooey gore than anything thoughtful. That's more of his métier. However you feel about the filmmaker, he certainly knows the power of ridiculous kill scenes.

Again, critics generally accepted "Thanksgiving" as good, silly fun. Alonso Duralde and Christy Lemire, the co-hosts of the review show "Breakfast All Day," were both positive on the film, with Duralde saying that it makes for a great movie to see with a crowd and Lemire stressing that she had a great time. They both loved the film's cast, too, with Lemire admiring that, Addison Rae notwithstanding, it wasn't just famous person stunt casting. Eli Roth even commented on the movie's casting in an exclusive interview with /Film, so he is at least astute in that regard. 

Reviewing "Thanksgiving" for IndieWire, Alison Foreman gave the film an A-, writing: 

"With more time dedicated to table-setting than gorging on gore, Roth and [writer Jeff] Rendell create a living-breathing corner of the United States that's actually worth terrorizing. The people populating this fictional version of Plymouth don't feel 'real,' per se, but they're toxically relatable, and the complicated relationship they have with Thanksgiving is as politically charged as it is annoyingly pointless in life."

Foreman's only issue with "Thanksgiving" was that it relies very heavily on characters checking Instagram to tell its story, and it makes a lot of references to billionaire mogul Mark Cuban (!), meaning the film will feel incredibly dated very quickly. Although, she did enjoy the soundtrack, which includes bands like the Misfits and The Waitresses.

But then, all films become dated eventually, so that's hardly a cardinal sin. If you're looking for a fun Thanksgiving movie this holiday, and you are allergic to sentimentality, then maybe "Thanksgiving" will be more your beat.