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Black Christmas
By Jeffrey Anderson,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Haywire holiday horror remake takes a feminist position.

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Black Christmas
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What's the Story?
In BLACK CHRISTMAS, it's near the end of fall semester at Calvin Hawthorne University, and several sorority sisters are preparing to spend some time celebrating. Riley (Imogen Poots) has no family to go home to. Kris (Aleyse Shannon) is an activist who's currently trying to get a classics professor (Cary Elwes) fired for using too many works by White men. Marty (Lily Donoghue) and Jesse (Brittany O'Grady) are their best friends. Together, the young women perform a musical skit during a holiday talent show in which they accuse fraternity boys of date rape. They hope to stir up a little controversy but instead start getting threatening DMs from Calvin Hawthorne himself. Then powerful masked figures show up at the sorority houses and start to kill the women. But Riley knows what to do, and it involves walking right into enemy territory.
Is It Any Good?
Having little to do with either the 1974 classic or the very poor 2006 remake, this holiday horror reboot is a strong attempt at a feminist statement that often goes either haywire or not far enough. Black Christmas, like its predecessors, is set in a sorority house at Christmastime, and there are brutal killings, but that's all these movies have in common. (The earlier two were more traditional "slasher" films.) At first, the new movie raises interesting discussions about how some classes are largely taught based on the writings of White men, without much diversity. The characters even argue about it, with interesting takes.
Directed and co-written by Sophia Takal, the movie also spends a little time getting to know its characters, establishing their friendships and relationships in natural ways and using the holiday atmosphere to interesting effect. But as a horror movie, Black Christmas is pretty bland; the killings aren't scary, and they don't have much emotional impact. As soon as their friends die, the other characters seem to simply forget about them. Then, the final showdown contains an evil plot so ludicrous that it largely negates all the arguments the movie was trying to make. The original 1974 version is still the best: smart, scary, and atmospheric, with strong characters and performances. This one gets points for trying, but it doesn't quite work.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Black Christmas' violence. Do the killings have an emotional impact? Why or why not?
What is the movie trying to say about gender, equality, and diversity? Does it succeed?
Should classics courses be taught using the works of White men? Would it be possible to make the classes more diverse?
Are men and women equal? What steps could be taken to make both groups feel that way?
Is the movie scary? What's the appeal of horror movies?
Movie Details
- In theaters: December 13, 2019
- On DVD or streaming: March 17, 2020
- Cast: Imogen Poots , Cary Elwes , Aleyse Shannon
- Director: Sophia Takai
- Inclusion Information: Female actors, Black actors
- Studio: Universal Pictures
- Genre: Horror
- Topics: Holidays
- Run time: 98 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG-13
- MPAA explanation: violence, terror, thematic content involving sexual assault, language, sexual material and drinking
- Last updated: March 8, 2023
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