It’s A Wonderful Knife (2023) spoiler free review
Every time a bell rings an angel gets to kill. It’s a Wonderful Knife is a 2023 American slasher comedy film directed by Tyler MacIntyre and written by Michael Kennedy. It’s a spin on the 1946 Christmas film It’s a Wonderful Life and was released by RLJE Films on November 10, 2023, followed by its streaming release on Shudder on December 1, 2023.
After saving her town from a psychotic killer, Winnie Carruthers’ life is less than wonderful. When she wishes she’d never been born, she finds herself in a nightmare parallel universe where without her, things could be much, much worse.
Film synopsis
The cast includes Jane Widdop as Winnie Carruthers, Joel McHale as David Carruthers, Justin Long as Henry Waters, Jess McLeod as Bernie Simon, Katharine Isabelle as Gale Prescott, Aiden Howard as Jimmy Carruthers, Erin Boyes as Judy Carruthers, Sean Depner as Buck Waters, Zenia Marshall as Darla Berlin, Hana Huggins as Cara Evans, Kiki Faye as Vicki Pepper, William B. Davis as Roger Evans, Dimitri Vegas as Pete, and Cassandra Naud as Karen Simmons.
My opinion
A year after Winnie stops the killer angel and loses some of her friends, she can’t help but feel guilty. While the town decides to act as if nothing had happened, Winnie wishes that she had never existed. Unfortunately for her, her wish opens a portal, turning her wish into reality instantly, altering reality completely. Without her existence, the killer angel has claimed 26 lives. It is Winnie’s duty to stop him and return to her timeline before it is too late and the portal closes forever.
Following a similar concept to Happy Death Day (2017) and Totally Killer (2023), the film mixes slasher with comedy and time travel. But unlike these, It’s a Wonderful Knife does not achieve the same good result. Thanks to the work of Jane Widdop as Winnie and Justin Long as Henry Waters the film becomes more fun and enjoyable. The rest of the cast is average playing easily forgettable characters with predictable outcomes. In the end it becomes just another generic slasher with a messy scrip that had the potential to be something much bigger. It’s a ok christmas horror film that can be added to the holidays watchlist to spend the time, nothing more and nothing less.