black christmas (1974) review
(SPOILERS!!)
honestly so much better than halloween or friday the 13th i understand why there is so much hype. the fact that we never see the killer fully, or the actually believable (even to the police in the movie) red herring that is peter adds another layer of suspense. peter's anger at jess and him trying to intimidate her out of getting an abortion, along with the obscene phone calls, highlights the slight feminist themes of the movie.
it is one of few slashers that don't rely on gore for scares; there is barely any, and i appreciated the lack of nudity for shock value. it doesn't follow the traditional slasher structure; for the first hour or so plays out more like a mystery thriller than a horror, although we do get our horror kicks with barb's death, and the ending, which is absolutely CHILLING.
overall 8/10 i loved it!!
in response to charlestopher,
the movie does focus a little too much on the police; i would like to use some of that runtime exploring the relationship between clare and her father; it would make us care a little bit more when she dies and he is looking for her. also, i know that black christmas was one of the first films to use pov shots, and it does make the movie feel intense and voyeuristic when it is used at the very start, i just wonder if they're overused a little bit in this movie.
there have been two remakes of Black Christmas, one in 2006 and one in 2019. what do you think the original movie could have done better, i.e. what would a remake ideally add to the movie?