BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974)
Starring: Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, John Saxon
Directed by: Bob Clark
WARNING! THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!
Pre-dating the generation of slasher films to follow in the mid to late 70's, Black Christmas remains the best example of how to make a great slasher film.
Great
characters, fantastic writing involving not only scares, but some humor and
serious personal issues of some of the characters, well photographed with
Christmas lights that somehow make the scenery more chilling then festive,
and most of all, hardly a drop of blood to be seen. You are scared by the
actions on the screen, by what you know but can't see. Any hack director can
make a gore film that will give a few frights because of the blood and guts,
but how many films can have the right to say "we can still scare people 32
years after the release date".
This film could have easily been just another drive-in horror film, and for years in was just considered a cult hit among a number of fans who may have saw it under it's many alternative names. But when the slasher trend came in with Halloween (always called the first slasher film), and most of the bad films (many of them parts 4,5,or 6 of a series), more fans jumped aboard this film as the video craze kicked in. This film indeed has it all.
A
little history on the film. Director Bob Clark's previous two directorial
projects were the classic "Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things" and
"Death Dream". Many "A" list stars were attached to this project at one time
or another, but thankfully the final cast was great.
As for the terrific ending, studio execs wanted the film to end on a more final, tragic note for Jess. But Bob Clark stuck to his guns and want the ending to be open. There have been many fans who like or dislike the ending. There is no other way this film can end; you never see the killer, and you know he's still alive. What can be scarier.
In the early
80's, NBC television was scheduled to air an edited print of the film under
it's alternate title "Stranger In The House". It was pulled at the last
minute because television execs at NBC found the film still to scary to air,
even
in an edited version.
The remake of this great film is opening, when else, 12/25/06. Having found some news on the film, it will be nothing like the original. Andrea Martin, who portrayed "Phyllis" in the original, is cast as the house mother, but no one, and I mean no one will ever be better than actress Marian Waldman who portrayed the part of "Mrs. Mac" in the original.
You will know, and see the killer, but also know why he did what he did, and
also find out who "Angus" is. I doubt the remake will be nowhere near as
great as the original, but at least they aren't trying to do so.
Buy it, rent it, but see it, but not alone and remember, don't tell them
what we've done Agnus...
My Rating:
REVIEWED BY TONY BERNARDINI
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