Turkey Hollow was the final Lifetime film on my DVR.  I watched it when it originally premiered on November 21st and I was actually surprised to discover that I enjoyed it.  I’m not sure why it take me so long to get around to writing a review.  It probably had something to do with the holidays…

And speaking of holidays, Turkey Hollow is a Thanksgiving film!  There’s a surprising lack of Thanksgiving films.  There’s a countless number of horror-themed Halloween films and there are millions of Christmas movies but, with the exception of Turkey Hollow and that slasher film that Eli Roth said he might make some day, Thanksgiving has always been curiously underrepresented.  So, let’s start this review by thanking the makers of Turkey Hollow for paying some respect to Thanksgiving…

As for the film itself, it takes place in a town called Turkey Hollow.  The economy of Turkey Hollow is entirely built around raising turkeys to be killed for Thanksgiving.  The most powerful man in town is evil old Eldridge Sump (Linden Banks), who pumps his turkeys full of dangerous drugs and chemicals.

One of the few people willing to stand up to Eldridge is a hippie vegan named Cly (Mary Steenburgen).  As the film begins, Cly is being visited by brother (Joey Harrington) and his two children.  At first, Annie (Genevieve Buechner) and her younger brother, Tim (Graham Verchere) struggle to get used to life Aunt Cly’s house.  Not only does Cly not eat meat but she doesn’t have wi-fi either!  Seriously, it’s crazy…

Tim becomes fascinated by the legend of the Hoodoo, a creature that is said to live in the wilderness around Turkey Hollow.  One day, while at searching for it, he accidentally releases all of Eldridge’s turkeys.  Now, under the bizarre bylaws of Turkey Hollow, Clay will automatically lose her property unless she comes up with $10,000.

However, Tim and Annie have a plan!  They’re going to track down the Hoodoo, take a picture, and sell it to a tabloid.  However, while out searching, they don’t come across the Hoodoo.  Instead, they discover four other bizarre creatures.

The monsters — which were created by the same people who created the Muppets — are obviously Turkey Hollow‘s main attraction.  They were also the main reason why I felt some trepidation about watching the film.  From the commercials, they looked like they might be a little bit too cutesy.  I was terrified that they would spend the entire movie breaking out into song.  But, when I watched the movie, the creatures actually turned out to be so ugly that they were adorable.  They were cute but they were never cutesy and I appreciated that.

Anyway, Turkey Hollow turned out to be a lot better than I thought it would.  It’s a film for kids but, at the same time, there’s a few jokes for the adults (mostly dealing with Cly’s use of marijuana) and, in the role of narrator, Ludacris is often quick to point out the film’s more … well, ludicrous moments.  At its best, his narration is reminiscent of Aubrey Plaza’s voice over as Grumpy Cat in Grumpy Cat’s Worst Christmas Ever.

We definitely need more Thanksgiving movies and Turkey Hollow is a good enough start.