|
| As I've said before on this site, Bob Clark
is the unsung hero of American horror films. With
the likes of Children Shouldn't Play
With Dead Things and Deathdream
already under his belt he made Black Christmas
and almost single handedly invented the American
slasher movie. Yes, the Italians had done it before
but Clark brought it to the masses and made it a
popular horror sub-genre.
Clark always wanted his teens in peril to be
realistic and looking back at the film now, this
is his trump card. The performances by the co-eds
are fabulous, Margot Kidder and Olivier Hussy
in particular are excellent. The characters all
act like teens do; swearing, drinking and being
obnoxious, long before they were allowed to on
screen. Even when the film descends into horror
film cliché, as Hussy climbs the stairs
alone knowing that the killer is still at large,
she does so trying to save a friend with a large
poker as protection. John Saxon is always good
to watch and he is great here in the role of the
cop on the case.
The use of the phone as an instrument of terror
was inspired and the twist in the tale pre-dates
many an Eighties slasher. The distorted voice
the killer uses even recalls the demented duck
voice from Lucio Fulci's The New
York Ripper. Black Christmas's
main effect on the horror genre though was the
introduction of the horror holiday. Halloween,
Friday the 13th, April
Fools Day, Happy Birthday to
Me, they all owe a huge debt to Bob Clark.
Clark shoes great restraint during the films
many murder scenes, in fact only Kidder's
demise features any real blood. The scenes of
mayhem are supremely handled and often subtle
in their execution. The soundtrack too is a strange
aural accompaniment that adds to the mood rather
than detracting from the terror being generated.
|
|
| Video |
| The image is grainy in places but works well when
Clark uses light and reflection to create his picture.
It's a colourful transfer that has that classic
Seventies look. |
|
| Audio |
| The stereo soundtrack is ok but it's a shame
we don't get the 5.1 mix that features on
the UK and US discs. |
|
| Extra Features |
| Roadshow have put together a fabulous selection
of extras. First off we get two excellent documentaries.
Black Christmas Revisited follows two of the films
stars; Art Hindle and Lynn Griffin, as they revisit
the original Black Christmas house (an integral
part of the films sinister mood). Its 36 minutes
of interviews with the cast and crew plus some goofing
around by the hosts and makes for fascinating viewing.
On Screen – black Christmas fills in the gaps
with 45 minutes more, there are a few cross over
comments between the two but overall they are a
perfect accompaniment to the main feature. Clark
is always an entertaining interviewee and doesn't
disappoint here.
Add to this we also get trailers, a stills gallery,
the press book and poster artwork and the original
screenplay for PC users. We miss out on the running
commentary by Clark that is present on the US
disc but overall it makes for a great value local
produced disc. |
|
| The Verdict |
| Excellent, Black Christmas is
a scary roller coaster ride that was instrumental
in creating the slasher flick. Its full of great
performances, deft directorial touches and genuinely
scary moments, Clark's decision to show less
of the horror and concentrate on the characterisation
and plot works wonders here and has created a classic
of the genre. Add to that a DVD chock full of extras
and you have a must buy release. |
|
|
| User Comments |
 |
3 user comments have been posted so far |
|
| |
 |
Black Christmas is good from start to finish.