Black Christmas (1974)

Sleeeep in Heavenly Peeeeeace

We're all familiar with the slasher genre. We've all heard of Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, and their respective titles. But there are several slasher films that are not as well-known. It is actually confusing as to why Black Christmas is one of the forgetten ones, as many argue it as the first slasher film, without it there would not be a slasher genre in the first place. As a pioneer for it's genre, the film should not be forgotten, which is why I'm glad to do this review.

Like all slasher films, our focus is on a group of teenagers. These teens a women in college to be exact, our main character being Jess Bradford (Olivia Hussey), a woman currently dating a slightly ill-tempered musician, and is planning to abort their child. Not out of malicious reasons, but just because she feels she is not ready. Her boyfriend Peter (Keir Dullea) wants to have their child, and he starts going through a bit of a breakdown throughout the movie do to their arguing about it.

Another important character is Barb (Margot Kidder), a drunk do to the fact her mother never really tries to spend time with or talk to her. Barb is a large jerk throughout the movie, but we can relate to her and actually like her. A lot of modern horror movies could learn a lot from her character, you should have a rude and mean character, but you still have to them just as likable as all of the other good characters. Barb is especially important because she is the one who incurs the wrath of the film's serial killer, who may or may not be named Billy.

The killer starts off by making threatening and perverted phone calls to the sorority, and Barb, while drunk, decides to give the killer a piece of her mind. His response is "...I'm going to kill you..." We never see Billy's face, or even most of his body, he is always in the shadows. The one time we see his eye still adds mystery, because the filmmakers refuse to say which actor they used, and as I mentioned above, there is question behind if his name really is Billy. What we do know is that he is a serial killer, and he somehow has to power to distort his voice over the phone, which is somehow even more terrifying than it sounds. You will never forget what Billy says to the women over the phone.

As for a horror film in total, I only need to say this. This is one of the most horrifying films I have ever seen, possibly the most. There are no jump scares, at least none that I felt were jump scares. Everything scary is this movie is done slowly, and emotionally. This movie will scare you, no matter how unflappable you believe you are.

The film is a solid 4 out of 5. If you are even a casual fan of horror, you need to find this film. There is a remake of the film that is nowhere near as good and received poor reviews, so just remember the original is from Nineteen Seventy-Four. It's the earliest slasher movie, and it still out scares a lot of them.

Tangled

Are We Sure This Is A CG Film?

This was a film I was ready to either dislike, or think was completely standard. I was not happy when I heard the film would be CG animation instead of traditionally hand-drawn, I did not think the title needed to change after being called "Rapunzel", and I guess I let my petty complaints get the best of me. I finally saw the film thanks to Netflix instant, and I'm glad I did. Tangled  is a damn good film.

While I do not usually care for CG animation over hand-drawn, I have enjoyed these films before, and not just the ones from Pixar or Dreamworks. Ice Age  comes to mind. But what makes this stand out from all of the other CG films I've seen is that this one feels like traditional hand-drawn animation. There is nothing stiff or realistic about the CG, it is instead completely smooth and cartoonish. I love the way this film looks and feels. Could it have worked if the film had been hand-drawn? Very much so. But I can't help but adore how stylistic this film is, and hope to see more CG films like it in the future. In the least, it would mean the creator's made sure to put time and effort into their creation.

As a Disney Princess film, it works as well. Our protagonist is fun, cheerful, and easy to root for. Our villain is despicable, mean, and terrifying when she wants to be. Our love interest is dashing, clever, and a thief. Yes, this film actually has a thief as our love interest, and he knows it, and reveals in it. He's not a villain per say, but he is not too toned down. And for once, in these kind of romances, the heroine completely knows he's a crook. There is no scene in the movie were Rapunzel finds out her love is a thief and calls him a liar, she knows he's one from the start, he never hides the fact. I like this, it makes the film feel different, but not as much as the fact the two animal leads are completely silent. They do great visual jokes, but they never speak, even though they act like cartoon animals.

My biggest complement, this is a movie that deserves it's PG rating. The PG rating is stamped on almost any film nowadays. But I think the creators wanted PG from the start, and if they did, it shows. Scenes featuring blood is realistic and intense, nothing gory, but nothing like a prick on the finger either. The action is slapstick, for the most part, but nothing too intense that I would call it PG. Still, I would actually agree with the MPAA that the film would need to be toned down a little for a G rating. But this film excepts it's PG rating, and makes sure it earned. My hat is off to the film makers.

My rating is a 3.5 out of 5. If you've got a little daughter or a son, they will enjoy this movie. Although you daughter will be more likely to admit it. If you don't, such as myself, then it's a fun film and worth a rental, possibly a purchase.