Black Christmas: Difference between revisions

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
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(Import from TV Tropes TVT:Film.BlackChristmas 2012-07-01, editor history TVTH:Film.BlackChristmas, CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported license)
 
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* [[Cat Scare]]: Surprisingly averted with the actual cat. Instead, we get Barb's asthma attack.
* [[Cat Scare]]: Surprisingly averted with the actual cat. Instead, we get Barb's asthma attack.
* [[The Cavalry Arrives Late]]
* [[The Cavalry Arrives Late]]
* [[Cluster F Bomb]]: Phyllis's boyfriend Patrick swears at every available opportunity.
* [[Cluster F-Bomb]]: Phyllis's boyfriend Patrick swears at every available opportunity.
** Barb too. She is the most foulmouthed of the girls.
** Barb too. She is the most foulmouthed of the girls.
* [[Comic Relief]]: Mrs. Mac and Barb, when they're drunk. Sgt. Nash's dimwittedness also provides laughs.
* [[Comic Relief]]: Mrs. Mac and Barb, when they're drunk. Sgt. Nash's dimwittedness also provides laughs.
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* {{spoiler|[[Downer Ending]]: Peter is mistaken for the killer, is killed by Jess and then we find out that the killer is still in the house with Jess}}.
* {{spoiler|[[Downer Ending]]: Peter is mistaken for the killer, is killed by Jess and then we find out that the killer is still in the house with Jess}}.
* [[Evil Phone]] / [[Harassing Phone Call]]: Repeatedly.
* [[Evil Phone]] / [[Harassing Phone Call]]: Repeatedly.
* [[Exact Eaves Dropping]]: {{spoiler|How killer knows to say "just like having a wart removed" to Jess during one of the phone calls, providing more Red Herring fuel against Peter}}.
* [[Exact Eavesdropping]]: {{spoiler|How killer knows to say "just like having a wart removed" to Jess during one of the phone calls, providing more Red Herring fuel against Peter}}.
* [[Extreme Melee Revenge]]: After doing poorly at his recital, Peter smashes his piano.
* [[Extreme Melee Revenge]]: After doing poorly at his recital, Peter smashes his piano.
* [[Final Girl]]: Jess Bradford.
* [[Final Girl]]: Jess Bradford.
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* [[Police Are Useless]]: Largely averted. Only the [[Unfortunate Implications|Irish-American]] is always incompetent, although one has to wonder why the officers rely on him so much, when he's clearly not to be trusted.
* [[Police Are Useless]]: Largely averted. Only the [[Unfortunate Implications|Irish-American]] is always incompetent, although one has to wonder why the officers rely on him so much, when he's clearly not to be trusted.
* [[Psychopathic Manchild]]: Billy, presumably.
* [[Psychopathic Manchild]]: Billy, presumably.
* [[Pun Based Title]]: It's a subversion of the song ''[[White Christmas]]'', here black not standing for African-American, but for evil.
* [[Pun-Based Title]]: It's a subversion of the song ''[[White Christmas]]'', here black not standing for African-American, but for evil.
* [[Red Herring]]: {{spoiler|Peter.}}
* [[Red Herring]]: {{spoiler|Peter.}}
* [[Reaction Shot]]
* [[Reaction Shot]]
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* [[Trashcan Bonfire]]: Clare's dad, Jess and Chris are warming up to one when the little girl's body is found in the park.
* [[Trashcan Bonfire]]: Clare's dad, Jess and Chris are warming up to one when the little girl's body is found in the park.
* [[Trope Maker]]: For [[Slasher Movies]].
* [[Trope Maker]]: For [[Slasher Movies]].
* [[The Un Reveal]]: We never know who Billy is, why he's murdering people, or even ''what he looks like''.
* [[The Un-Reveal]]: We never know who Billy is, why he's murdering people, or even ''what he looks like''.
* [[Vader Breath]]: At the very beginning, as Billy closes in on the sorority house.
* [[Vader Breath]]: At the very beginning, as Billy closes in on the sorority house.
* [[Voice Changeling]]: Billy, somehow.
* [[Voice Changeling]]: Billy, somehow.
* [[What Happened to The Mouse]]: The fate of Claude, the cat.
* [[What Happened to The Mouse?]]: The fate of Claude, the cat.
* [[Window Pain]]
* [[Window Pain]]
* [[Would Hurt a Child]]: The one whoever murdered the 12 year old girl in the park.
* [[Would Hurt a Child]]: The one whoever murdered the 12 year old girl in the park.
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* [[Organ Dodge]]: Kelli stabs Agnes in her glass eye.
* [[Organ Dodge]]: Kelli stabs Agnes in her glass eye.
* [[Parental Incest]] / [[Villainous Incest]]: Billy's mother rapes him in an insane attempt to impregnate herself. She succeeds.
* [[Parental Incest]] / [[Villainous Incest]]: Billy's mother rapes him in an insane attempt to impregnate herself. She succeeds.
* [[Peek a Bangs]]: Agnes favours this look.
* [[Peek-a-Bangs]]: Agnes favours this look.
* [[Peek a Boo Corpse]]: Eve is found [[Off With His Head|decapitated]].
* [[Peek a Boo Corpse]]: Eve is found [[Off With His Head|decapitated]].
* [[The Pen Is Mightier]]: Clair's death, and the first instance of [[Eye Scream]] in the film.
* [[The Pen Is Mightier]]: Clair's death, and the first instance of [[Eye Scream]] in the film.
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* [[Two Faced]]: Billy, after he's burned.
* [[Two Faced]]: Billy, after he's burned.
* [[Unexplained Recovery]]: Billy and Agnes somehow surviving the sorority house fire.
* [[Unexplained Recovery]]: Billy and Agnes somehow surviving the sorority house fire.
* [[Very Loosely Based On a True Story]]: In a "making-of" featurette, one of the filmmakers offhandedly mentions Billy's origin was partly inspired by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Kemper Edmund Kemper].
* [[Very Loosely Based on a True Story]]: In a "making-of" featurette, one of the filmmakers offhandedly mentions Billy's origin was partly inspired by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Kemper Edmund Kemper].
* [[Voice Changeling]]: Agnes.
* [[Voice Changeling]]: Agnes.
* [[The Voiceless]]: Billy.
* [[The Voiceless]]: Billy.

Revision as of 13:51, 8 January 2014

He sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake...[1]
If this movie doesn't make your skin crawl, it's on TOO TIGHT!
—1974 Tagline
Let the slay ride begin.
—2006 Tagline

A 1974 slasher, redone in 2006, and one of the Trope Makers for the slasher genre.

The story is about a group of sorority girls who are staying over for Christmas break. Each one has their problems, but they don't know it's about to get worse, as a psychotic bastard sets up home in the Sorority House attic... And starts his reign of terror, terrorizing the girls with disturbing phone calls before killing them...

The 1974 movie was directed by Bob Clark, who is better known for directing a very different Christmas-themed movie...

Not to be confused with Silent Night Deadly Night; another Christmas-themed slasher flick.

This film has examples of the following tropes:

The remake provides examples of:

  • A God Am I: One of Billy's fellow asylum inmates apparently has messianic delusions:

  Orderly: "Happy birthday."

  Melissa: "No. You see, serial killers murder repeatedly for sexual thrill. Billy Lenz was a spree killer - dude just fucking lost it."

  1. ↑ Alternatively: He kills you when you're sleeping, he chokes you when you wake...
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