A Year Before ‘Home Alone,’ We Had ‘Deadly Games’ (1989) – 30 Years Later

I always am drawn to horror films that are foreign, resurrected by Alamo Drafthouse, or have myriad alternate titles.  Deadly Games OR Dial Code Santa Claus OR Game Over OR 36.15 code Pere Noel is a French holiday-themed film from Filmmaker Rene Manzor (The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV series) that delivers not only in the three above-mentioned categories, but also seems to have been the overlooked inspiration for a Hollywood blockbuster. The craziness surrounding the film, which was released 30 years ago this month on December 2, 1989,  should be enough to entice even the most obscure horror fan, but Deadly Games (as it shall henceforth be known) wins the unofficial 2019 award for random film to make a splash in online horror groups.

Thomas (Alain Lalanne: Avatar 2009) is an nine-year-old genius whose IQ is matched only by his imagination. He spends nights in a WWII airplane dreaming of adventures with his dog, J.R. By day, he dresses as a mullet-clad mini-Rambo to defend his posh mansion with elaborate booby traps and surveillance systems.

His mother, Julie (Brigitte Fossey: The Man Who Loved Women 1977). is a toy magnate who not only fosters Thomas’ genius but also his staunch belief in Santa Claus. Deadly Games begins on the morning of Christmas Eve when Julie finds out Thomas’ faith in Santa has been shaken by a doubting friend. In a somewhat misplaced decision, she delivers a mandate for her store to be a veritable winter wonderland to restore her child’s devotion to Santa. However, while she tends to the place the night before Christmas, a devious faux Santa makes his way to her large home to terrorize Thomas, who has been left HOME ALONE.

Well, he’s alone with his dog and his senile grandfather (Louis Ducreux: The Double Life of Veronique 1991).

Apparently, a fired seasonal worker (Patrick Floersheim: Frantic 1988) at Julie’s store discovers that a large batch of presents will be secretly delivered to her house that evening. Stealing his Santa suit and using his access to the store, the thug intercepts the delivery with ill intent. Unlike Kevin McAllister, though, Thomas faces actual danger.

Of course, Thomas’ traps are more intelligently set, and the burglar in Deadly Games seems to be out for blood as much as money. A particular scene in the trailer effectively sets this film apart from its cotton candy American imitator.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2uA3fvA74M

Though the film plays out with much the same template, the stakes are much higher for Thomas than Kevin McAllister could ever imagine. Not only defending his home and solitude, Thomas must protect his grandfather, mother, and estate caretakers against the frightful foe.

Get the soundtrack for Deadly Games right here!

Recently released on Shudder as Deadly Games, this film is also making the holiday rounds at Alamo Drafthouses as Dial Code Santa Claus. Though there has been no confirmation that the makers of Home Alone drew inspiration from this film, American horror audiences will surely see the correlation in tandem with much darker themes as a new holiday horror classic.