History YMMV / Thanksgiving2023

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: [[spoiler: Was Newlon telling the truth that Amanda was his mistress, and her unborn child was his, or was he simply delusional and [[BelievingTheirOwnLies believed his own lie]] about the affair? The fact that Amanda had no on-screen interaction with him and focused her concerns on her husband during the riot implies the latter.]]

* EpilepticTrees: A theory growing in popularity about the movie itself that was started by Jay Bauman of ''WebVideo/RedLetterMedia'' is that it's meant to represent a hypothetical remake of the movie in the original fake ''Grindhouse'' trailer as a way of explaining it's stylistic changes from said trailer.

* SignatureScene: As mentioned above, The Black Friday opening scene has been praised for it's over the top, yet still frightening nature, [[RealismInducedHorror helped out due to it being somewhat close to real life]] as well as featuring one of the more intense kills [[spoiler:with Amanda getting her head smashed in with a shopping cart and part of her scalp ripped off by a wheel.]]
** [[spoiler:The entirety of John Carver's macabre Thanksgiving dinner where he reveals to his hostages the cooked up corpse and decapitated head of Kathleen to their horror.]]

* TearJerker: The whole "Thanksgiving, not Thanksbuying" movement going on in the background of the movie. It is clear the Black Friday massacre at the start of the movie greatly traumatized the town of Plymouth to the point of its people protesting the opening of [=RightMart=] during Black Friday in favor of spending time with their families, especially for those who lost members of their families during the massacre. For people who actually lost family members in real life Black Friday riots, this is bound to hit home.

--> ''"This Thanksgiving, THERE WILL BE! NO! '''LEFTOVAHS!"''

** Gaby (who some fans fondly describe as a [[Film/Scream1996 Tatum Riley]]-esque character [[spoiler:who gets to survive]]) and Yulia, the other girls in Jessica's group of friends, may not be too prominent, but are decently acted characters who make fans feel for them in several moments.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: Shopping-related injuries or deaths happen every Black Friday, ranging from tramplings to intentional murder. The site [[https://blackfridaydeathcount.com/ Black Friday Death Count]] kept track of such incidents until 2021.
** I think Black Friday riots are prominent enough in pop culture that this doesn't qualify. I never saw or heard any reviews or discussion of this movie where the viewer indicated they did not think Black Friday riots are real.

** The Black Friday scene is consistently praised for being one of, if not, the scariest part of the movie. This because the scene, despite being an exaggeration of the "Black Friday Chaos" phenomenon, is scarily accurate to how real Black Friday riots go down, as they are infamous for causing severe injury and even a CruelAndUnusualDeath to those who partake in them.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Many fans have taken to [[GunNut local arms dealer [=McCarty=]]] for his loud and funny behavior, his preaching of Music/BlackSabbath (and his BerserkButton if you don't know who they are), as well as [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold his nicer moments with Jessica and Scuba.]] It helps that, despite his introduction, he is one of the few characters who isn't a complete {{jerkass}}, [[spoiler: and that not only ''he'' survives the movie, but [[ChekhovsGun the ring he gives Jessica]] is the only reason the main characters live as well.]]

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Many fans have taken to [[GunNut local arms dealer [=McCarty=]]] for his loud and funny behavior, his preaching of Music/BlackSabbath (and his BerserkButton if you don't know who they are), as well as [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold his nicer moments with Jessica and Scuba.]] It helps that, despite his introduction, he is one of the few characters who isn't a complete {{jerkass}}, [[spoiler: and that not only ''he'' survives the movie, but [[ChekhovsGun the ring he gives Jesse]] is the only reason the main characters live as well.]]

* SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments: [[spoiler:When Jesse and Scuba escape their bonds during John Carver's Thanksgiving dinner, Thomas and Gaby are still tied up -- but instead of pleading with the pair to try and free them, they urge them to run and get away.]]

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Many fans have taken to [[GunNut local arms dealer [=McCarty=]]] for his loud and funny behavior, his preaching of Music/BlackSabbath (and his BerserkButton if you don't know who they are), as well as [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold his nicer moments with Jessica and Scuba.]] It helps that, despite his introduction, he is one of the few characters who isn't a complete {{jerkass}}, [[spoiler: and that not only ''he'' survives the movie, but [[ChekovsGun the ring he gives Jesse]] is the only reason the main characters live as well.]]

* IdiotBall: Yulia's father reaction to the killings to take her daughter and leave fro Florida immediately ''would'' have been a smart one... had he simply arrived with already packed bags on the way to the airport. Instead, he waits several hours before that, giving the killer plenty of time to reach them. He even puts his headphones on while packing.

* CrazyIsCool: Whacky {{Metalhead}} [=McCarty=] also has an enormous weapons cache and knowledge of resourceful tactics that make him as impressive as he is eccentric.

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Many fans have taken to [[GunNut local arms dealer [=McCarty=]]] for his loud and funny behavior, his preaching of Music/BlackSabbath (and his BerserkButton if you don't know who they are), as well as [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold his nicer moments with Jessica and Scuba.]] [[spoiler:Him surviving the film]] and being one of the few characters who isn't a complete {{jerkass}} also helps.

* TearJerker: The whole "Thanksgiving, not Thanksbuying" movement going on in the background of the movie. It is clear the Black Friday massacre at the start of the movie greatly traumatized the town of Plymouth to the point of its people protesting the protesting the opening of [=RightMart=] during Black Friday in favor of spending time with their families, especially for those who lost members of their families during the massacre. For people who actually lost family members in real life Black Friday riots, this is bound to hit home.

* TearJerker: The whole "Thanksgiving, not Thanksbuying" movement going on in the background of the movie. It is clear the Black Friday massacre at the start of the movie greatly traumatized the town of Plymouth to the point of its people protesting the protesting the opening of RightMart during Black Friday in favor of spending time with their families, especially for those who lost members of their families during the massacre. For people who actually lost family members in real life Black Friday riots, this is bound to hit home.

* TearJerker: The whole "Thanksgiving, not Thanksbuying" movement going on in the background of the movie. It is clear the Black Friday massacre at the start of the movie greatly traumatized the town of Plymouth to the point of its people protesting the commercialized Thanksgiving of mass buying for black friday in favor of spending time with their families, especially for those who lost members of their families during the massacre. For people who actually lost family members in real life Black Friday riots, this is bound to hit home.

* EpilepticTrees: A theory growing in popularity about the movie itself that was started by Jay Bauman of ''WebVideo/RedLetterMedia'' is that it's meant to represent a hypothetical remake of the movie shown in the original fake ''Grindhouse'' trailer as a way of explaining it's stylistic changes from said trailer.