The Next Reel Film Podcast

Black Christmas • The Next Reel

2016-12-22

"Agnes, it’s me – Billy!" Bob Clark may be best known for directing his Christmas classic, 1983’s A Christmas Story, but many people don’t know that he got his start in horror like so many other filmmakers, and that one of his first horror films was another Christmas story – Black Christmas. What’s so refreshing about watching this 1974 film is that it’s a slasher film that doesn’t feel as base as so many others that followed suit, but more importantly that it adopted the first person POV shot for the killer. Join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson – as we discuss this year’s holiday film, Clark’s ‘74 film Black Christmas. We talk about why this film worked for us and how it really came to be. We discuss Clark and how he directed this, but also how he took to the script to fill it with wonderful details for all of the characters and helped move the story’s setting to a college sorority house. We look at the cast – from Olivia Hussey and Keir Dullea to Margot Kidder and John Saxon – and why they all work so well here. And we talk about how well this film did at the box office and what that means for it when looking at the profits. And we announce our Instagram #GuesstheMovie #2016 #PonyPrize challenge winner and runner up! It’s a fun little horror romp and we have a great time celebrating Christmas with you all with this one. Check it out then tune in! Film Sundries

Watch this film: iTunes • Amazon
Script Transcript
Original theatrical trailer
Original poster artwork
Flickchart
Letterboxd
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