The UK is already rich with folk tales and old beliefs, but this isn't one of them. The actual Lord of Misrule is an "office" during the Tudor and Stuart periods in which the selected person oversaw the feasting and merriment during the twelve days of Christmas. It fell out of favor during and after the Interregnum. He was usually selected from among the servants or other low ranking people and only "ruled" during those 12 days. This film turns him into some sort of Halloween bogie man, a mystical figure who goes about cavorting with evil spirits and welding power and influence year 'round. Tosh. The writer bastardized an old English Christmas tradition and tried to pass it off as a horror movie - and steals from every "small English village steeped in supposedly ancient pagan rituals and assorted mumbo jumbo" movie/television episode ever made (and there have been a slew of 'em) in the process. Add to that the writing is somewhere between "saw that coming a mile away," and "well, that made zero sense." Pick one. If you've seen The Wicker Man, you've already seen this drivel. I rented it on Amazon Prime and am considering requesting a refund. Skip it and thank me later.
