Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Horrible, fascist and poorly acted

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Black Christmas, also known as Silent Night, Evil Night (the title they initially gave it for the first American screenings so movie-goers wouldn't mistake it for a blaxploitation film), is generally considered to be one of the first classic slasher flicks, and apparently even had a hand in inspiring John Carpenter's Halloween. But you might know director Bob Clark from a very different Christmas movie - one that will probably be playing on at least one 24-hour loop on some basic cable channel this week - A Christmas Story.It's a shame that this movie didn't get the recognition it deserved at the time, but it has gone on to become a cult horror film in the years since. It's smart, well-acted, wonderfully shot, terrifying, and even genuinely funny at times.** SPOILERS! **I knew I was in for a treat during the opening shots, moving seamlessly between the inside and outside of the beautiful sorority house and showing POV shots of the mysterious killer making his way around the home (I especially loved the shot of him climbing the trellis). There's a great theme throughout of happy, celebratory, or even just mundane things going on in the house while the killer lurks within... super creepy. I think the whole "Babysitter and the Man Upstairs" legend in general is TERRIFYING so the use of it was great - it's one thing to know that the threat is outside trying to get in, but what about when you're locking it inside with you? The search party coming by and almost cheerfully reminding the girls to "just keep your doors and windows locked and you'll be safe!" was a chilling reminder.The phone calls were surprisingly scary - and surprisingly vulgar. The killer's alternating between multiple voices/personalities, seeming to scold himself at times, crying, screaming... the calls became more and more frenzied and his incomprehensible fury makes him unrecognizable as even a human threat. There's no way to know his background, his motives, which makes him terrifying in a much less tangible way. We can't relate to him, we can't see our own pain or shortcomings in his motivation, which makes him completely unpredictable and alien.I enjoyed that, aside from the (possibly unrelated?) girl being killed in the nearby park, the main characters don't have any idea that murder is afoot until it's too late. The victims themselves have NO idea, but even Jess (Olivia Hussey) has no indication that anyone has been killed until she finally swings Barb's bedroom door open in the last 15 minutes or so - we're the only people privy to that information.Speaking of which, the kills - surprisingly few, really, considering its status as a slasher film - are all creative and well done. There's no lingering on blood spurting from knife wounds, no over-exaggerated looks of horror that go on for too long, no shirts being ripped open for no reason besides showing a hint of breasts. They're quick and effective but still fun. My favorite is probably Barb being stabbed with her own crystal unicorn grabbed from behind her bed - shot beautifully and the juxtaposition of Jess listening to a young choir singing carols downstairs is just awesome - but the image of Clare in the rocking chair with the plastic garment bag sucked into her mouth is classic for a reason. That reveal definitely got a gasp from me, and the occasional return to the attic - showing his hand rocking the chair her corpse sat in, or her cat innocently licking the bag she was contained in - was a cruel reminder that the search for her was hopeless.There's no denying that there's a strong feminist undertone to the whole film - or, really, far less subtle than that. This movie taking place in the early 70's - and just a year after Roe v. Wade was decided - is important context for its content. Women being terrorized by a dominating and violent male presence is par for the course for countless horror and slasher films, but it feels more relevant here, more close to home. Barb's murder being the most intimate - taking place in her own bedroom, practically in the throes of sleep, with one of her own belongings - was no accident considering we saw her crassness offend multiple male authority figures (Clare's father and a local sergeant, most obviously, but she fights back - verbally anyway - against the crazed prank caller, too).In addition to the more direct threat of the looming killer, we have more pervasive examples of men attempting to silence women in a variety of ways. The bumbling sergeant first ignoring Clare going missing because she's probably shacked up with some guy and then ignoring the prank calls because it's "probably one of your boyfriends playing a joke". Clare's father is basically just walking disapproval throughout the entire movie, turning his nose up at Mrs. Mac's language, posters around the sorority house, and Barb's attempts to be humorous in her slurred, drunken state.And, more directly, there is Jess informing her boyfriend, Peter (Keir Dullea), in no unclear terms that she is pregnant with his child and seeking an abortion. Again, the freshness of Roe v. Wade in American society informed his hateful response - "don't you think about anyone but yourself", and later "let's get one thing straight: you are not going to abort that baby". He's outraged at the idea that she dare make a decision about her own body without his express approval, and is pushed further into his own spiral of deflecting blame when she rejects his very matter-of-fact marriage proposal. He's belligerent to the point of being rightfully suspected as the killer - especially after seeing him destroy that piano after his unfavorable recital.The irony of such gruesome acts being carried out during what is supposed to be the happiest, coziest time of year is constant but not obnoxiously so - it's more something that we notice rather than something that is being told to us, if that makes sense. The warm glow of the colored Christmas lights, the metallic tinsel on the wreaths, the campus emptying out as people scurry off to see their families... it all feels incredibly nostalgic until we remember there's a goddamn psychopath holed up in the attic.Which leads us to the ending, which is amazingly dark, even for a horror flick. There is so often some kind of humanization of the villain, or maybe a dramatic standoff between the final survivor and the killer. We almost get that, or at least we think we might, when Jess is cowering in the basement after Peter smashes his way in. When the police find her slumped over with a dead Peter on top of her, we think there's a chance - albeit small - that the nightmare is over. Jess has not only defeated her would-be killer, but she's defeated this domineering male presence that is trying to control her. But as the camera pans away from her, sedated in bed, and glides by the attic - mumbling and giggling echoing off the walls - and eventually outside, we hear the phone ringing and ringing as the credits roll, and we're reminded that evil often does prevail.Ultimately, a brilliant and sorely under-appreciated film. Go watch it now, get into the Christmas spirit!

The movie was good, the only coons was that we don't get to know the characters much because most of them die off so fast. We also don't get to know who the actual murderer is. I just wish they would have worked on a better ending instead of leaving us wondering. Other than that, the movie was watchable, especially during Christmas.

Halloween (1978) is often credited for kick-starting the slasher film craze that went into hyper-drive after the subsequent success of Friday the 13th (1980). But it could be reasonably argued that there were much earlier films which could more accurately be said to have laid the groundwork for this sub-genre such as several Italian gialli such as Mario Bava's Bay of Blood (1971) or Sergio Martino's Torso (1973). But it should also not be forgotten that the Canadian film Black Christmas touched on many of the ideas that would become slasher clichés in later years and should most certainly be considered a hugely influential and significant work. For my money, this one tops all of the aforementioned movies and remains one of the absolute classics of the horror genre. Set during the Christmas holidays, a psychopath surreptitiously enters a sorority house and hides out in the attic; from here he commits a series of brutal murders.This one scores in that it manages to combine what was a pretty original horror concept in 1974 within the framework of a story populated with well-rounded characters and a sense of realism. The cast is great and all do fine work here. We have a commendably serious performance from Olivia Hussey as the main protagonist, better still is Margot Kidder in a scene stealing role as the constantly drunk live-wire Barb, Marion Waldman puts in an amusing turn as the alcoholic dorm lady, Doug McGrath is very funny as the idiotic inept cop at the station, genre favourite John Saxon is great as ever as the police captain and Keir Dullea is suitably odd as the slightly unhinged music student boyfriend of Hussey's character. This type of top drawer talent and properly thought-out characters are very welcome in a sub-genre which would go on to be synonymous with paper thin characters who were little more than cannon fodder for a maniac. In Black Christmas we have an actually rather disturbing killer who is even more frightening in that he stores the bodies of his victims in the attic totally unbeknownst to any of the other characters. He also indulges in some highly creepy obscene phone calls to the girls in the house – these were practically as disturbing as any of his acts of murder. In fairness, the film is not overtly violent and much of its fear factor comes from the more psychological end of the spectrum.In amongst all this is another surprise – humour that is genuinely amusing. The scene where Saxon confronts McGraths dozy cop about the questionable name of the sorority house he had witlessly taken down is comedy gold. Director Bob Clark's previous film, the quirky zombie film Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1972), was far more directly about eliciting laughs but it sort of failed to be scary at all. With Black Christmas he delivered a far superior product and truly directs this one with great skill. The festive atmosphere really works in this one's favour too with the snowy Christmas background adding a lot of additional atmosphere. This is also a film which is not afraid to ultimately hold back information and never feels the need to explain absolutely everything. This mystery which can never be fully explained adds additional intrigue to proceedings and ultimately winds up with a rather bleak, yet very effective ending. In summary, Black Christmas is a genuine horror classic and a film so well made that it rewards repeat viewings.

Over the years the "Halloween" "Friday the 13th" and "A Nightmare on Elm St" films have become the Monster Movies of the late 20th century. Instead of having "Dracula" "Frankenstein" and "The Mummy" we had "Michael Myers" "Jason Voorhees" and "Freddy Kruger". Well a few years before those movie villains hit the screen there was another killer who packed a powerful punch his name was Billy and he was terrifying in the 1974 film "Black Christmas". To me he is the scariest man in movie history.This 1974 film is not well known. It is however 10x better than most other horror movies pf the 1970's and 1980's! This film has many things that seemed to of inspired "Halloween". The opening shots and set up were almost identical to "Halloween" which was released 4 years later. In this film As winter break begins, a group of sorority sisters, including Jess (Olivia Hussey) and the often inebriated Barb (Margot Kidder), begin to receive anonymous, lascivious phone calls. Initially, Barb eggs the caller on, but stops when he responds threateningly. Soon, Barb's friend Claire (Lynne Griffin) goes missing from the sorority house, and a local adolescent girl is murdered, leading the girls to suspect a serial killer is on the loose. But no one realizes just how near the culprit is.This film developed a cult following and was later remade. The original however is still an edge of your seat thriller! If you like horror films then get this. You will love it!