Awhile back, I started a discussion on one of the cult film Facebook groups about what was the first slasher movie. I made it as a poll. Psycho. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Blood Feast. A handful of others. A few joke entries. I thought it was a fun topic. Light. Silly. Let’s crack wise and banter. Whee!
And then some people got mad at me. They outright insulted me. Serious horror dudes took valuable time away from frowning and looking at autopsy footage to condescend to me like I was born yesterday.
WHY?
I didn’t think to mention Black Christmas.
And they were right. They’re dorks, but they were right. I still don’t know what I think the first slasher movie is, but I could totally see this being the choice of some dweeb with a bad Ed Gein tattoo. It’s got the killer’s POV camera shots. It’s got the cast of sorority girls, some of whom are there for no other reason than to die. It’s got the police who don’t take the problem seriously until a head is all but dropped into their box of donuts. It’s got the people who innocently walk into situations that the audience knows in advance are death traps. It’s set on a holiday.
This is a real slasher movie, however you slice it. It’s also one of the most well-made ones I’ve ever seen. The production values aren’t slick, but director Bob Clark is smart about the creepy details and knows how to set a scene. Also, his sorority girls aren’t just pretty brain-dead types. They’re wonderfully watchable smart alecks who like their drink and salty language. Margot Kidder owns the screen as the most outrageous of the bunch. Also, there’s a lot of great ultra-70s wallpaper and curtains in the sorority house. Clark’s come a long way in the couple of years since Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things (a movie that I wish was as good as its title).
He’d later become a comedy director, most famous for A Christmas Story (though his biggest hit at the time of release was Porky’s). Some of us out here though still consider him one of the great unsung horror filmmakers. Me and the jerks agree.