|
Black Christmas (Unrated Widescreen Edition) | 
 enlarge | Directors: Glen Morgan, Julie Ng
Actors: Michelle Trachtenberg, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Lacey Chabert, Katie Cassidy, Kristen Cloke
Studio: Dimension Films
Category: DVD
List Price: $12.95
Buy Used: $1.19
You Save: $11.76 (91%)
New (36) Used (70) from $1.19
Rating:  107 reviews
Sales Rank: 15004
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Subtitled, Widescreen, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), Spanish (Subtitled)
Rating: Unrated
Region: 0
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 95 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.5 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: 80108
UPC: 796019801089
EAN: 0796019801089
ASIN: B000MM0LIM
Theatrical Release Date: December 25, 2006
Release Date: April 3, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
| |
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Studio: Genius Products Inc Release Date: 09/16/2008 Run time: 95 minutes Rating: Ur
Amazon.com
Needless and unnecessary are two words that have little meaning in Hollywood, especially when you're talking sequels or remakes. Case in point: Black Christmas, the revisionist version of the 1974 horror thriller largely thought to be the proto-slasher movie (this was four years before the first Halloween installment). The original, from director Bob Clark, is still considered a masterpiece of tension, understatement, innovative camera perspective, economic efficiency (a polite way of saying "ultra-low budget"), and killing off pretty young girls in grisly ways without any cumbersome exposition regarding the psychopath's motives. This, by the way, from the same Bob Clark who would soon bring us the beloved Porky's franchise as well as Black Christmas's polar opposite, the sweetly nostalgic classic A Christmas Story. Anyway, as needless and unnecessary as this remake is, it certainly delivers the goods on 21st-century slasher conventions as the sorority sisters of Alpha Kappa are picked off during Christmas break in ever more gruesome fashion. There's nothing wrong with all of this, particularly for fans of impalements, crushed skulls, ripped-out eyeballs, and some good old-fashioned Christmas cookie cannibalism. Writer-director Glen Morgan, who earned his own credibility as co-creator of the Final Destination series and the interesting 2003 remake of Willard adds a few clever visual homages to the original along with the amped-up extreme gore. Clark's device (was he the first to use it?) of creepy, mouth-breathing phone calls from killer to victim remains intact and creepy. He also resurrects Andrea Martin, one of the then-unknown actor victims who, now famous, plays the prim housemother. Another addition, which may not be so welcome to purists of the genre, is a load of exposition and backstory for the killer. Disturbing as these flashback set pieces are, they're also somewhat distracting to the foreboding tone. But you get what you pay for, and lots of people are going to pay dearly to dream of the shocking frights another Black Christmas will bring. --Ted Fry
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 102 more reviews...
 Perfect Reaction January 7, 2009
M. White (Helena, Montana)
I got this movie for my husband for Christmas...he had been wanting to see it and I am NOT a fan of these kinds of movies, but he wanted it so I got it for him. It was the perfect reaction because he never would have thought I would buy it. I did watch it with him, and while I didnt care for it, he LOVED it...but this is no surprise! It is exactly what it says it is...
Last Christmas, I gave you my heart... January 2, 2009
James Seger (The Woodlands, TX United States)
A good remake that respects the original. I had the opportunity to watch both versions of the movie over the weekend and while this remake is the lesser of the two, it is much better than most remakes.
It gives a back story to Billy that was completely missing in the original and is fairly well done.
I appreciated the pacing and tension and the over-the-top gore was appreciated in this day of PG-13 horror.
The problem with the movie is in the writing. The characters act so stupidly in the name of scares that it frustrates the viewer. They don't even try to call the cops when they should, then when they do the explanation of why the police can't make it is unbelievable and a character that is chased through a crowded building 'forgets' to scream.
Still, it's worth a rent if you don't mind screaming 'Oh, come on!' at the screen from time to time.
Last Christmas, I gave you my heart... December 29, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
A good remake that respects the original. I had the opportunity to watch both versions of the movie over the weekend and while this remake is the lesser of the two, it is much better than most remakes.
It gives a back story to Billy that was completely missing in the original and is fairly well done.
I appreciated the pacing and tension and the over-the-top gore was appreciated in this day of PG-13 horror.
The problem with the movie is in the writing. The characters act so stupidly in the name of scares that it frustrates the viewer. They don't even try to call the cops when they should, when they do the explanation of why they can't make it is unbelievable and a character that is chased through a crowded building 'forgets' to scream.
Still, it's worth a rent if you don't mind screaming 'Oh, come on!' at the screen from time to time.
A Ghoultide Holiday Treat For Gorehounds and High Body Count Fiends (Everyone Else Should Drink Spiked Eggnog) December 25, 2008
J. B. Hoyos (Chesapeake, VA)
The horror genre has changed tremendously since the release of the original "Black Christmas" in 1974. This classic masterpiece spawned countless imitations that included "Halloween," "House on Sorority Row," "A Stranger is Calling," and "The Demon." It was inevitable that a remake would eventually be released.
What it lacks in suspense, realism, and mystery, this "Black Christmas" re-imagining more than makes up for in gore and a high body count. Modern horror fans will love it! "Let the Slay Ride Begin" is one of the truest tag lines I've ever read for a movie. Though I'm not a big fan of gratuitous, over-the-top gore, I do love a high body count and this film definitely has it. I estimated about twenty deaths total. Sure, there are plenty of plot holes. For instance, why is the killer able to get to the sorority house through the snow storm but the girls can't leave? And why couldn't they run to a neighbor's house for help? Most sorority houses are located adjacent to campus, not in the secluded boonies. However, like I've always said, if you want realism, watch the news. That will definitely ruin your holidays.
The cast is an excellent one and consists of some of the most beautiful, young talent you will ever see assembled in one horror film. Unfortunately, there were too many brunettes in this bimbo sorority house; after a few glasses of wine, they all began to look alike.
"The "Black Christmas" remake has enough nonstop action and killing to keep you awake. It's a slay ride from beginning to end - an amusement ride you don't want to stop. Any serious horror fan would appreciate finding this film under their Christmas tree, especially one that is decorated with eyeballs and a decapitated head.
Merry Christmas! And may all your Christmases be black!!!
The Real Problem was Tying it to the Original December 12, 2008
Graboidz (Westminster, Maryland)
For the past year I've heard that the remake of "Black Christmas" was simply awful. Finally gearing myself up for a viewing after picking it up for $2 I steeled myself for the awfulness to follow.
I was actually surprised. No, "Black Christmas" is not a great horror film, and when compared to the original it downright blows. But, viewed on it's own, it's a passable slasher flick. Let me clarify a bit. When I want to see a slasher horror flick, I really don't need much storyline other than hapless victims who've stumbled into some deranged killers path. "Black Christmas" does this fairly well, in that an escaped killer returns to his childhood home. Unfortunately, the killer's home now houses a sorority. The body count is fairly high, the gore effects are passable, and the college sorority sisters are hot. So while "Black Christmas" isn't really scary, it does satisfy the slasher flick craving fairly well.
Of course, there is plenty of stuff to tear apart in the flick. The Yellow-Highlighter-Skin-Toned killer is absurd looking, the incest angle is laughably bad as is the killer peeping through floorboards, holes in the ceilings and walls and shower stalls. Instead of creating suspense, it just comes off like a horror film cliche being spoofed. But I can live with it.
I think the biggest issue this movie faced, was calling itself "Black Christmas". Like Rob Zombie's "Halloween", long time fans of the horror genre cannot help but compare the original to the remake of these classics, and almost always the remake will pale in comparison. If this had been released under a different title, or even as a possible sequel to the Bob Clark original, I think fans may have been a little more forgiving. As it stands, "Black Christmas" will forever be linked to the mulititude of other failed horror remakes: "House of Wax", "Prom Night" and "The Fog". Still, if you enjoy slasher flicks, and can put the original out of your head, "Black Christmas" isn't too bad.
|
|
|
Copyright 2008 DVDonsale.com | |
