Black Christmas Review: 2 Ups & 7 Downs

Downs...

7. The Clumsy Social Commentary

The most intriguing element of Black Christmas' marketing was the implication that the film was trying to update the original's sorority slasher premise for the #MeToo era, and on paper, it's certainly a compelling idea which could've made for a pressing, urgent horror film.

But the manner in which the film deals with themes such as toxic masculinity, rape culture (especially in American fraternities), and the remnants of PTSD, is so eye-rollingly on-the-nose and lacking in nuance that even the most ardent social activists are likely to find it patronising.

There's literally a scene in the film where a male character pulls the "not all men..." card, and there's a weird smugness to the film's examination of the (undeniably horrifying) gender power dynamics at play in society.

Black Christmas' anger at the patriarchy is justified and interesting for all of about three minutes, before the script starts ladling out the platitudes with no subtlety whatsoever, and the film effectively becomes more of a lecture than a smart satire of a male-dominated society.