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BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974) aka Silent Night, Evil Night Director: Bob Clark Hacktors: Olivia Hussey, Margot Kidder, John Saxon Cutting Remarks: Black Christmas is not only credited with kickstarting the 'Santa slashers' genre, but seen as a prototype for slasher flicks in general. Looking at it in the cold light of 2005, you can see a fair amount of truth in both views. Certainly, this Canadian production's numerous killer's point-of-view shots would crop up in Halloween four years later. And the maniac who terrorises a sorority house has a penchant for making the kind of obscene phone calls which put the Scream trilogy's various Ghostfaced fiends to shame.       Ironically, considering its status as a blueprint for what was to be, Black Christmas is actually quite unique in many ways. To be specific as to why, would be to give away the latter part of the film and especially the ending. But suffice to say that it's one of the scariest slasher movies because of its masterful use of the unknown. In that sense, it also perches on the cinematic timeline leading up to The Blair Witch Project. And those seriously creepy - and insane - phone calls to the house are the equal of anything which spews from between Linda Blair's cracked lips in The Exorcist.       The acting is generally excellent, with a pre-Superman Margot Kidder enjoying herself as a drunken teen and John Saxon giving us his ever-dependable 'earnest cop' routine. Clark's direction, too, amps up the scares with a lingering subtlety - particularly in the closing sequence with a killer tracking shot. Black Christmas has only one weakness, but a fairly damaging one by today's standards: the plot. The proceedings sag quite badly around the mid-section, with too much fruitless searching for characters which we already know to be dead. The chilling conclusion restores the movie's overall rep, however, proving again that first and last impressions last longest. DVD Extras: While the Region 1 disc only offers a short interview with John Saxon, filmographies and the original theatrical trailer, Tartan's Region 2 disc is a different kettle of blood. Plenty of fun stuff here: there's an audio commentary from director Clark which is informative, if mixed poorly, with his deep voice too low in the mix. Pride of place goes to a 'revisited' feature, in which various cast and crew share reminisces about the film and have a bit of a laugh. Dan Duffin, the webmaster of a Black Christmas website, has a look around the house featured in the film, providing a voiceover as he prowls around the various rooms. Hardcore fans also get to see the opening sequence with alternative titles such as Silent Night, Evil Night. Then there are trailers, plus radio and TV spots. A good package. Release Date: Out now. [Check it out at Amazon UK] [Check it out at Amazon US] [Reviews Menu] [Home] © Copyright Slasherama 2002-present