_**Grisly slayings in a winter hamlet in Utah**_

An up-and-coming Sheriff (Jim Cummings) wants to prove himself when horrific murders suddenly grip his remote town near Christmas time. Is it an animal, a human or something… else? Robert Forster plays the soon-to-retire dad and Riki Lindhome a subordinate officer. Manly Jimmy Tatro is also on hand.

“The Wolf of Snow Hollow” (2020) is a mystery/thriller with horror elements and a zippy sense of black humor. It has the setting of “Donner Pass” (2011), “Snowbeast” (2011) and “Silent Night” (2012), but a different threat mixed with clever amusement.

This is a solid piece of full moon entertainment by writer/director/star Jim Cummings. I loved the snowy locations and Chloe East is a highlight on the feminine front, along with Amanda Brown in a small role. Meanwhile the humor is amusing. Yet the flick’s a little too frenetic for its own good. Cummings coulda reigned things in for some more mood, but it’s his movie, not mine.

The film runs 1 hour, 25 minutes, and was shot in Kamas, Utah, which is a about 25 miles east of Salt Lake City, on the other side of the mountain range.

GRADE: B-/B