Joe Bob's Red Christmas - Black Christmas
I have been going through Christmas specials on Shudder with Joe Bob Briggs, including "Jack Frost" (1997), which I might add something for it on the blog eventually. He isn't the biggest fan of "Black Christmas" (1974), not hiding the fact that all the talk of "Halloween" (1978) in relation to it is more or less overblown. I never really prescribed to it, either. And Joe Bob rolls his eyes at how a lot of us praise it. I can't help it: I fucking love it.
All that said, for this viewing, in early November (I'm in the spirit, wanting a better year than 2020 which sucked ass), I particularly took interest in how Barb seems to be an absolute nuisance to Mr. Harrison (James Edmond) and his daughter, Clare (Lynne Griffin). Clare finds her obviously obscene as her father does. It amuses me how they both respond to her the same, even though they are never in a single scene together. Mostly shaking their head or barely able to look her in the face because of the disgust for her obnoxious drunken behavior and foul mouth. While we might find her a riot, I can see why they would consider her troubling. Mr. Harrison seeing Barb feeding booze to a child then laughing about the possibility of him being "shnockered", it's clear he's mortified of her. It doesn't help that later Barb talks about Clare being dead, her being blamed for it, playing around with nude magazine pictorials, and discussing turtle fucking. The entirety of the film has Barb with booze. I can't think of a time where she isn't a bit lit. It is clear that she's boozing due to this undercurrent of sadness Barb seems to try and mask through snark, sarcasm, and a form of stand-up comedy that is offensive to those who just aren't of her particular brand of comedy.
Levity is used to help offset the intensity. I just love the shot above. RIP Saxon and Kidder.
I watched a companion to "Black Christmas" (1974) made as a fan film called "It's Me, Billy", released in the spring that really feels like a nice continuation of this now-revered film. I didn't discover it until the mid 2000s. I remember bringing it up on the IMDb Horror Message Board after watching it. I just wanted to get others' input. It knocked me for a loop. I just thought I discovered a real gem (something that irritates Joe Bob, the use of "forgotten gem" for certain heralded flops in their time), but much like what you see on Letterboxd, reception is divided. Enough love it, though. "It's Me, Billy" couldn't be feature length due to rights and all that, but as a fan film, it's quite well made. But at 42 minutes, I wished it was longer. Still, you could a lot worse than "It's Me, Billy." Not shilling for it, but after some films taking its name that left me unimpressed, the fan film gets a lot right the others seemed to lack.
There are some details Joe Bob adds about Edmund O'Brien almost being cast as Saxon, trivia about Kidder, director Bob Clark, actress Hussey, and even the obscene phone calls and use of music (or lack thereof). He really contributes to the overall enjoyment of the film. Even if he isn't the film's greatest champion.
He reminded me that this year's "Red Christmas" special was 2019 when that piece of shit, Blumhouse Black Christmas "all men suck" remake was released. Poots was damn good in that film, my one takeaway. It was a brief downer in an otherwise enjoyable Job Bob Shudder Christmas special. Darcy didn't seem to love the 1974 too much, either. Plus, he doesn't like the ending of the film. While a lot of us just dig that ending, Joe Bob rants a bit on why it doesn't work for him. Not knowing who it is and how the list of suspects no longer paints any picture of who it might be, that ending just didn't work.
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