CS Weekly Archive > DVD of the Day > 04/06/07

The Ghosts of Grosses Past

by scott castle

Glen Morgan (also directed)

Based on the screenplay written by Roy Moore

Following on from his unsuccessful 2003 re-working of the horror film Willard, former X-Files writer-producer Glen Morgan re-imagines the 1974 Canadian cult film Black Christmas with results that will definitely land him on Santa's naughty list.  And speaking of lists, Morgan's Black Christmas manages to tick off virtually every cliché of the slasher genre as the beautiful inhabitants of a sorority house are mangled one by one on Christmas Eve.  The supplementary features, sadly more engaging than the movie they concern, find Morgan lamenting the box office failure of Willard and morosely suggesting that if Black Christmas fails, his career as a filmmaker might be its last victim.  While Morgan explains his attempt to imbue the film with several thematic elements that call to mind the banned X-Files episode "Home" (which he co-wrote with producer James Wong), star Kristen Cloke (also Morgan's wife) explains her husband's reluctance to deliver the studio's idea of a visceral horror picture with shocks and gore rather than the more subtle psychological creepiness he prefers.  Overall, the supplements serve as a much scarier story for the potential Hollywood filmmaker who seeks to tell their story unfettered by corporate tampering than the movie they allegedly augment.

The staff of CS Weekly wishes to offer its heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Bob Clark (director of the original Black Christmas) and his son Ariel, who were killed by a drunk driver on April 5.

Black Christmas (Uncut)

Dimension Films

Unrated; 94 min.

$29.95

Buy it now

Scott Castle is one thesis shy of a master’s degree in film.  He’s written two short films, four television scripts, and a handful of short stories. He lives in Los Angeles.

Black Christmas (Unrated) courtesy Dimension Films

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