I don’t think this slasher horror film, a remake of the cult classic Black Christmas from 1974, needs much of an introduction, as it is now rather notoriously infamous as a textbook example of a botched remake of a classic.
So, long story short. The plot in slasher horrors usually takes a back seat anyway and rarely amounts to much. So, what's going on here? Well, you know how it goes, a pair of deranged psychopaths — Billy and his daughter/sister Agnes (yep, it's
that kind of movie) — systematically and brutally murder a group of college girls over Christmas break in a sorority house that, ironically, bore witness to a lot of really fucked up stuff in the past, and just so happens to be the killers’
childhood home. (What a fucking brilliant idea to turn that house of terror into a sorority house, huh?).
Michelle Trachtenberg plays the role of Melissa, one of the more likeable girls that we are introduced to. She's also arguably the hottest of them all. She gained my sympathy when another girl got blackout drunk, whereupon Melissa took on the
role of a sister figure, looking after her and refusing to leave her side. Sadly, she's eventually killed off too after making the fateful decision to investigate a noise all alone. She actually puts up a decent fight though, she could've even
easily won - that is, if she weren't in a horror movie. Of course it seemed like a genius idea to her to keep attempting to unlock that locked window instead of beating the crap out of the killer whom she had successfully defended herself
against using a ski pole... Smh. She's killed with a skate thrown to the head from behind. Which must've been an intentional reference to the Ice Princess (2005) haha. '
Michelle sustained scratches to her legs and bruises to her neck doing this scene.
Melissa's alternate death featured in the UK cut is probably the most brutal, painful and cruel kill in the entire film. She has her eyes gouged out and is dragged across the floor by her empty eye sockets, into which the killer shoves his
fingers, all the while she's still alive. This death scene was filmed at the behest of Harvey Weinstein himself, much to everyone's dismay.
It's a shame; this character was definitely a final girl material. The nature of her death (both the US+UK cuts) also felt somewhat miscast/undeserving.
In the original script, the character of Melissa was intended to survive (not as the final girl though). Michelle, however, insisted that she would only accept the role if her character is killed off, as she hadn't planned on going back to horror
so soon and she also wanted to feel what it's like to die on screen lol.
I love good horror. I really do. It's actually my favorite genre. But unfortunately, this just isn’t it. Until recently, I considered the film to be so bad that I was extremely reluctant to at least skim through its key moments again in order
to provide a sober review, to the point where I was even thinking of giving up, which is mostly why it took me so fucking long to make another review thread.
Only now, after about the third rewatch and some thorough research, do I see that the film did have potential for a much more positive reception:
1. A stellar cast packed with genuine talent: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Michelle Trachtenberg, Katie Cassidy, Lacey Chabert, Kristen Cloke, Andrea Martin (albeit not all of them were well-known at the time). Their acting is awesome; they
convincingly portray a full range of emotions, ranging from distress to sheer terror; even their screams are top-notch.
>>213489968 (OP)has she got blacked on screen?
2. The film was directed by Glen Morgan (Final Destination1 &3), who, together with no less experienced and passionate James Wong, genuinely tried to pay homage to the legendary 1974 original. Morgan even asked for input from Bob Clark,
creator of the original film, as well as having him sign on as a co-producer.
3. Gorgeous cinematography. The visuals — composition, lighting, camera movement — all of it is top-notch. Definitely high-quality stuff.
4. In order to maintain suspense and keep the audience on edge, all of the sorority sisters in the film were written with an equal amount of characterization and given ample screentime. This clever decision was to leave the audience guessing
who the final girl would be, keeping the film fresh and not entirely predictable, at least for a while. The privilege of being the final girl eventually went to the then-unknown Katie Cassidy. She did deliver, though I can't help
thinking that Melissa, as portrayed by Michelle, or Heather (ME Winstead) would've been a noticeably better choice.
5. Atmosphere and feel. Easily one of the most Christmassy Christmas horror films out there to this day. It just oozes Christmas in every single damn frame, putting you right in that house with the girls with the lights and the crackling fire
and the icy gusts of wind heard outside. The remake really leans into the whole christmas vibe. The soundtrack is chock full of classic yuletide tunes, and the filmmakers clearly revelled in turning innocent symbols of the holiday period into
nightmares; ice skates, christmas lights, bakery rolling pins, christmas trees and such become violent tools of murder (the candy cane sucked into a prison shank is a particularly notable highlight).
6. The girls are hot. Always a plus.
So, why did they fumble the bag so bad?
2. Weinsteins' interference. The principal production company involved in making the film was Dimension Films, headed by the Weinstein brothers at the time. Supposedly, everything went smoothly until these two started meddling in the production
right on the spot and imposing their own demands, most of which were completely at odds with Morgan's more modest vision. He aimed to pay far greater homage to the source material. In the original screenplay, the tone was much more serious with
a noticeable lack of black comedy, there was only one killer instead of two - Agnes (Dimension Films however demanded that there would be two killers, Billy was initially supposed to be long dead); the film was supposed to be much less brutal,
and so on. The unpopular idea to introduce a backstory to the killer did come out of Morgan's head, though. That's all on him.
Moreover, Wong and Morgan (along with the cast) heatily clashed with the Weinstein brothers over the way the movie should end, which ultimately led to multiple rewrites and reshoots, resulting in three alternate endings (US/UK/DVD versions)
and alternate deaths for several characters. Morgan later reflected that once the Weinsteins came on set for the first time 'to oversee' the filming, the until-then laid-back mood grew tense pretty quickly.
They even secretly had the cast to film a number of scenes behind Morgan's back, their sole purpose being deceptive advertising as part of the trailer. These deleted scenes never saw the light of day in the final cut (e. g. Michelle aka
Melissa holding a shotgun while saying 'Merry Christmas, motherfucker'), which sparked understandable uproar at the time and undoubtedly contributed to the film's very poor reception.
3. Three alternate endings. One is trash, the other is entertaining, but still trash, only the third one (the one creators intended from the very beginning) is ok-ish.
4. Why the hell are the killers yellow and have jaundice? It's not like there's no explanation to it mentioned whatsoever, it's just... why? What's the purpose?
5. Eyeball obsession. Nearly every killed character has their eyes gouged out and eaten. This film is a whirlwind of gore and close-up eye destruction lol. It's grotesque, weird, and has no narrative justification. It's there just for the shock value.
The questionable business schemes didn't pay off much for the Weinsteins, as the film grossed only $21.5 million worldwide on a $9 million budget - technically profitable, but the producers expected more, thus it was hardly considered a financial success. Eat shit Weinsteins. Everything they touched, people strongly disliked. So I think it's fair to assume they ruined this movie.
Shortly after release, work on a sequel began together with the original creator, Bob Clark; however, his tragic death in 2007 shelved these plans.
Glen Morgan, disheartened by all the forced changes to the script and the overall tone of the film and the poor reception, openly declared that he would never direct another movie again should this one turn out bad. He kept his promise.
Although the decision to deviate from the original in the sense to introduce a backstory for Billy and Agnes was slammed upon by fans and critics alike (a short glance at imdb/Metacritic/RottenTomatoes says it all), in retrospect, I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing/a negative. People don't like change, especially when it comes to cult classics. I believe the creators deserve some credit for having the guts to try their own approach instead of making a mere copy of the legend, just dressed up in a more modern guise. I do recommend watching the film for the backstory alone at the very least, it's pretty fucked up. Yes, I guess I do agree with the idea that the less you know about the killer, the scarier he gets, but here we are. Let's just try to focus on the good while we're at it.
>>213490161not reading all that bullshit
its a perfect movie and much better than the original
If you don't take it too seriously, you actually find yourself... quite entertained? Having fun? I'd say so! It's a bad movie, but as a slasher horror, it's competent. Rare, even, in its own way. These movies will never aspire for 8/10s, let alone 10/10s, and that's okay. We love them anyway. They just keep it real.
As a horror film, this movie isn't very scary and offers few good jump scares, if any. The creepiest/most frightening moments for me are when Billy (or was it Agnes?) called the home landline, speaking with a disturbing voice. These scenes are very well done, and the actors - especially Michelle, whose character picked up most of the calls - portrayed their frightened facial expressions and gradual cautious panic flawlessly. It's full of tropes and it's overly stupid, yes, but with its creativity, the audacity to desecrate Christmas, rawness and brutality, sometimes it feels like a wild animal let loose. In a good way.
It's a hot trash, but an enjoyable one. And it's like infinite times better and much more respectful to the original than the piece of garbage 'remake' that came out in 2019. The sole good thing that blashpemy achieved was to draw attention to its predecessor, now, in today's perspective, more or less acknowledged as underappreciated.
5/10. A bad, but overhated movie. One of the rare 5/10s that I would actually recommend though, under certain circumstances. Just do not expect a good horror. Expect a fun one.
(I couldn't post a part of the review for some reason, it was about the unfathomable stupidity of the characters. Oh well what can I do,)
>>213490782This guy is based.
>>213489968 (OP)Bet she doesn't look like that now
>>213489968 (OP)Based review anon is back.
I watched this after shortly after the DVD came out, I don't remember much other than Michelle being gorgeous and me being quite bored besides that.
RIP
This kind of stalking or worshipping a dead woman is so creepy to me
Based review bro. Can’t read it yet but just bumping for now
>>213489983>Michelle, however, insisted that she would only accept the role if her character is killed off, as she hadn't planned on going back to horror so soonback to horror? what horror movie did she do before this?
also this movie is such a piece of shit. too bad she didnt survive until the end, that would have redeemed it slightly
>>213489968 (OP)>mom fucks son and has kid with himreally surprised this movie doesn't get posted about more here desu
>>213492443Buffy if you consider that horror
>>213492911i think i interpreted it wrong, i think maybe she meant she didn't plan on doing horror anytime soon after this movie
>>213489968 (OP)>She's killed with a skate thrown to the head from behind. Which must've been an intentional reference to the Ice Princess (2005) Idk how I missed this when I watched it
Where is her memorial? Findagrave states that she was cremated but I know Jews, especially orthodox ones, don't do that.
>>213492911Buffy is more like slasher/teenie drama.
>>213494013I highly doubt she was cremated. Some dickhead just keeps submitting that to find a grave and IMDb
I liked Black Christmas 2019 better because of pic related. Yes, I know it’s universally panned. I just like it. The remake also stars Brittany O’Grady, a black version of Elisha Cuthbert. That’s always a good thing. Not a contrarian. As you were.
>>213495102Wow I haven't this chick in ages, the last one was some Michael Fassbender horror movie.
>>213492443>too bad she didnt survive until the end, that would have redeemed it slightlyYes, after she was killed off, the film lost much of its appeal.
>>213492856Actually true lol
>>213493016Nono, you interpreted it right, she was talking about Buffy
>>213493552Maybe you watched the UK version, this particular death is only featured in the US one.
>>213494966It's literally considered a classic of horror TV.
>>213496255Idk if I’d consider Buffy horror. More like action/drama
>>213493016She auditioned for a zombie movie though, but got rejected for not sucking the director's dick.
>>213491268Consider it my gift to you!
>>213492198Thanks!
>>213496255>Maybe you watched the UK version, this particular death is only featured in the US one.I saw the US version but I just somehow didn’t make the ice princess connection
>>213496800Based. She had morals
>>213496800emma stone sucked dick for it instead
I think OP is the only person on this board that actually puts effort into posting instead of stupid meme shit like sneed or crust busting
>>213494013They do in some rare cases
>>213500171Most effort posts just die with 0-1 replies. Negative posts where you insult the movie you like gain a lot of traction. The board is stupid like that
Sadly, most of Trachtenberg's films were bad, even if she was good in them.
>>213500525i love her but unfortunately have to agree with this. she made some poor choices in her career (like turning down twilight)
or maybe she wouldnt get offered any good roles because she wouldnt whore herself out
at least we got ice princess, her magnum opus
To add to the actual topic at hand, I might try and give this one a rewatch just to see if it holds up any better a second time around. I don't think I even finished it the first time, I turned it off as soon as Michelle got killed because I hated it so much
