Black Christmas

Name: Black Christmas
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Horror
Released: December 20, 1974
Duration: 98 min
Rating: 65
Cast: Andrea Martin, Art Hindle, Doug McGrath, James Edmond, John Saxon

1974

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 11 Ratings

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7.2

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7.2	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 11 Ratings

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Black Christmas

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Movie Details & Credits

Ambassador Film Distributors | Release Date: December 20, 1974 | TV-MA

Starring: Andrea Martin, Art Hindle, Doug McGrath, James Edmond, John Saxon, Keir Dullea, Lynne Griffin, Margot Kidder, Marian Waldman, Olivia Hussey

Summary: During their Christmas break, a group of sorority girls are stalked by a stranger.

Director: Bob Clark

Genre(s): Mystery, Thriller, Horror

Rating: TV-MA

Runtime: 98 min

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Critic Reviews

Noel Murray

Much of the shtick used by Clark and screenwriter Roy Moore was later stolen both by countless hacks and at least one real artist (Halloween director John Carpenter), but few repeated Clark's most devious tactic, accompanying the violence with the sound of the killer's nerve-janglingly maniacal shouting. Read full review

V.A. Musetto

Not only does Black Christmas provide real chills, it introduces devices - like the opening, which is shot from the slasher's point of view - that inspired John Carpenter's Halloween and countless genre flicks to follow. [20 Dec 2009, p.61]

Budd Wilkins

Black Christmas just may be the perfect antidote to the saccharine sweetness of most Christmastime fare. Read full review

Staff (Not Credited)

What Black Christmas retains is the competent pacing and pure chaos that’s dealt in whispers and brutality, and what it lacks is a younger audience who just can’t quite understand that some horror films require imagination, suspense, and no explanation to hold our hand with. Read full review

Staff (Not Credited)

Although strictly standard fare, the material is elevated somewhat through Clark's skillful handling of such plot devices as obscene phone calls from the killer to the girls via the upstairs phone and a nicely handled twist ending, which provides a genuine shock. Read full review

Dave Kehr

Canadian-made unpleasantness (1975) about a psychopath stalking a college town. Bob Clark's direction is enthusiastic but sloppy-a presaging of his later Porky's. [02 Dec 2010, p.52]

A.H. Weiler

Considering the ersatz tension and plotting, Black Christmas is hardly worth the efforts of all concerned. Read full review

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User Reviews

MattBrady99

Dec 25, 2020

"Agnes, it's me Billy... Agnes, Agnes don't, don't tell what we did Agnes."

Chills down my spine. There’s something about horror movies set around Christmas that makes the magical season feel so unholy, yet still calming. In ‘Black Christmas’, whenever it’s night-time in the movie, there’s"Agnes, it's me Billy... Agnes, Agnes don't, don't tell what we did Agnes."

Chills down my spine.

There’s something about horror movies set around Christmas that makes the magical season feel so unholy, yet still calming. In ‘Black Christmas’, whenever it’s night-time in the movie, there’s nothing but complete blackness that makes everything from inside the house or outside feel so closed off in a claustrophobic nightmare.

One of the most effective and chilling slasher movies of the 70’s that actually scared me. Before John Carpenter's 1978 ‘Halloween’, there was ‘Black Christmas’, and before there was Jamie Lee Curtis, there was Olivia Hussey, the originally scream queen. Both movies are remarkably similar: set at a particular time of year and feature a killer with serious breathing problems and has a slow build-up that gives the audience enough time for us to care for the characters. Am glad this is getting some recognition in recent years.

The camera work and POV shots combined with the shadows made much of the movie so disturbing but also memorable. Major praise must go director Bob Clark for pulling all of this off. However, I still can’t believe he made this, since Bob Clark has the strangest career of any director out there.

The soundtrack is both eerie and atmospheric. Listening to it was honestly so uncomfortable. Guys, I can’t emphasis this enough, this movie is so freaking creepy, and funny enough, I didn’t expect it to be.

I think what makes this movie so effective is that the victims aren't being pursued by some kind of masked killer; in reality, it's just some guy lurking in the shadows that could be anyone. Also, it's not as if the killer is following the characters everywhere, they go; he's in the house the entire time and we the audience know that right from the beginning. A very Hitchcockian move.

Overall rating: I can’t recommend it enough. A solid Christmas movie wrapped up in terror.

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays everyone! Stay safe and healthy.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

TheQuietGamer

Dec 23, 2019

The holidays are often the busiest time of the year, and Black Christmas plays off of this well. The sorority girl protagonists are so distracted with the hustle and bustle of the season, as well as the everyday life problems that are typical for so many young adults during their collegeThe holidays are often the busiest time of the year, and Black Christmas plays off of this well. The sorority girl protagonists are so distracted with the hustle and bustle of the season, as well as the everyday life problems that are typical for so many young adults during their college years, that they naturally overlook key details about the events happening around them. Allowing a killer to move amongst them undetected and pick them off one by one as they separate.

With his cryptic, lewd phone calls and other forms of unhinged behavior, the antagonist of the movie really made my skin crawl. The way he's always obscured in shadow, never allowing us to have a good look at him makes him far more enigmatic and terrifying than any of the unkillable masked slasher icons everybody is familiar with. I love that we learn virtually nothing about him. He really is just some random guy who could be just about anyone. Something the movie tries to play off of with a fake out identity reveal. Which I'm sure was great back when this was first released, but ultimately doesn't prove very effective today do to how many times it has been used in other films since then.

Black Christmas actually has a pretty slow build-up. Something that allows the mystery to be fleshed out, tension to rise, and the sense of humor to shine. While I wouldn't call it a flat out horror-comedy, there are definitely moments placed throughout that are meant to make you laugh. The movie never goes out of its to set these moments up though. Instead they seem to come entirely from just how believable the characters and events are. I'm amazed by the movie's ability to capture life's real, naturally occurring humor through things like the incompetence of the police force or the uncaring irresponsibility of the college students.

The personalities and little histories of the characters themselves are also revealed to the audience in a very naturalistic way. There's not exactly any time taken to flesh out any of these girls to us. Instead we're thrown in with them in the middle of a small Christmas house party. From there it's their actions that define them and tell us who they are. The writing is so strong and the vision for each one so clear that you can easily see how true-to-life they are. This allows each one's subplot, no matter how small, to standout in our minds even if it only exists as a means of separating said character from the group so that they can be picked off.

Much like The Strangers, this film was inspired by true events and it's that sense of believability that makes it so forceful. The way it makes thoughtful rather than sporadic use of its blood and violence makes each death more impactful, to say nothing of the strength of its character work. This is simply an all around excellent slasher that will have you (carefully) checking the attic before you go to bed.

9.2/10… Expand

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