Many of you are probably familiar with Jennifer Nangle from her work as an actress in films such as Irrational Fear, Lilith or even That Night, the short she co-wrote, produced and starred in. However, she also has an ongoing web series Malvolia: The Queen of Screams. The character has even turned up in the film 10/31 and its sequel. And, of course, a show needs a holiday special. This brings us to Malvolia: The Queen of Screams – Thanks Killing.
Helena (Johnnie Mananzares) and Ben (Robbie Dias) have invited Cassie (Ian Neville) and Abby (Linnea Swanson) to join them for Thanksgiving dinner. It’s been a rough year for everyone, especially Abby who is still trying to cope with the death of her mother.
Their plans to have some drinks and watch a horror movie are interrupted by the arrival of another family. Malvolia (Jennifer Nangle), Charles (Charles Chudabala, Paranormal Attraction, Serena Waits) and Kelly (Reyna Meree Velarde, For Jennifer). And they have something much more horrifying than a movie in mind.
The press release for Thanks Killing says you might notice a hint of the Manson Family in Malvolia and her brood. I actually thought of something else. Oliver Stone is known for his biographies and political films, but his debut feature was something much different, and darker. Seizure, aka Queen of Evil which featured British Scream Queen Martine Beswick in the title role. She and her court appear in the home of a novelist played by Jonathan Frid and commence a reign of bloody mayhem.
There’s also plenty of differences between the two films, but they both nail the concept of the demonic queen and her followers. Nangle also has the same kind of presence Beswick had in her prime. Evil and deadly but strangely appealing and desirable.
The one thing I didn’t like about Thanks Killing was, you guessed it, CGI blood spray. The practical SFX by Robert Bravo are solid, however. Apart from that though It’s a fun fifteen minutes that will make a great alternative to spending Thanksgiving listening to your family argue.
Malvolia: The Queen of Screams – Thanks Killing will premiere on YouTube on Thanksgiving Day. For those not in the US that’s Thursday, November 26 at 10am PST (1pm EST). You can check Malvolia’s Facebook page for details. You can check out other episodes including previous Thanksgiving and Halloween specials on her YouTube channel.