Black Christmas is ostensibly a remake of a horror classic, but the film has so little in common with the original, it might as well be brand new. A common complaint levied at remakes is sticking too closely to the original film, a trait that remakes like The Omen, Psycho, and Carrie take to extremes, almost being carbon copies of their predecessors. On the other hand, a remake that strays too far from the original can also earn hate for not providing more of what the fans liked the first time. It’s a balancing act, and many remakes fail to pull it off.
Judging by the negative critical reviews and lukewarm fan response so far, Black Christmas 2019 won’t become one of the few horror remakes that fans consider at or near the league of the original, such as Dawn of the Dead 2004 or The Hills Have Eyes 2006. Black Christmas looks destined to be forgotten fairly quickly, and fade into obscurity over a short period.
That’s not to say that the film is worthless, as Black Christmas 2019 boasts a terrific lead performance by Imogen Poots, a likeable main cast, and some timely commentary about the #MeToo movement and rape culture in general. The problem is all those messages get lost among the cliched, underwhelming horror film surrounding it. When it comes to being a remake of Black Christmas though, Blumhouse’s film performs even worse.
Black Christmas Utterly Betrays The Original Movie
Black Christmas starts out with a decent amount of promise as a movie, but never once does it live up to the Black Christmas name and reputation. The original Black Christmas is a horror landmark, and a grandfather to the entire slasher genre. Black Christmas 2019 doesn’t retain the original’s mysterious killer, drops the lurid phone calls for laughable attempts to make text messages scary, and introduces supernatural elements into the plot that not only make the story more convoluted but also render the scenario laughable. In addition, its PG-13 rating prevents any of the colorful language used by the sorority sisters in the original film, and reduces all the kills to bloodless boredom.
By the time a gang of sorority sisters arrives at the AKO frat house with weapons like crossbows and a menorah for a mass brawl with a bunch of hooded, black magic goo-powered frat bros that would be at home on a professional wrestling card, Black Christmas 2019 has strayed so far from the spirit of its namesake that it’s barely even a horror film at all. This lends the film the air of a cynical cash grab, as if those behind Black Christmas 2019 wanted to tell an entirely new story, but weren’t confident it would be successful without piggybacking on an established brand. There’s more than enough room for a horror film with a feminist edge on the cinematic landscape, but the concept deserves better than Black Christmas, and so does the original Bob Clark-directed classic. In the end, Black Christmas 2019 is less like a yuletide treat and more like a lump of coal in one’s stocking.
More: Black Christmas Inspired John Carpenter’s Original Halloween
