Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating *

Cast: Imogen Poots, Aleyse Shannon, Lily Donoghue, Brittany O’Grady, Caleb Eberhardt, Cary Elwes, Simon Mead, Madeleine Adams, Nathalie Morris, Ben Black, Zoe Robins, Ryan McIntyre, Mark Neilson, Lucy Currey, Johnny McBride.

There are many aspects of university life, especially in the United States of America that leave a bad taste in the mouth, and whilst the truth of further education is a must, that people must have the opportunity to expand their mind and knowledge, the sense of history, tradition and ritual is one that can be cold, fearsome and leave the onlooker questioning the belief of power that arises from such institutions.

In a time of being able to confront the past, of being able to question even the founding fathers of such establishments, holding their actions up to our own morals and outrage, Black Christmas is a film that boldly, but failingly, tries to hold to account the actions of those who revere the damage done at the expense of the ethnic students, women and those that struggle to fit in.

The inclusion of Cary Elwes within the film is perhaps the biggest surprise of them all, a fine actor, one who captures the screen and who remain underrated much to the shame of the cinema going public, however he is a great comedy actor, an actor who that understands timing and the slight raised eyebrow can garner leverage in certain situations, but not in what surely is meant to represent a serious attempt to ask questions of the presence and toxic nature of fraternity and sorority houses of American University life.

To have an actor placed in a role which calls for underhand menace, a sense of foreboding, of absolute misplaced trust in what is meant to represent authority, is in this case a waste of the talent that Cary Elwes possesses.

This is unfortunately not the only problem facing the 2019 remake of Black Christmas, and aside from Imogen Poots who at least frames convincingly the sense of fear that the film asks for, the whole storyline is at best a convoluted arrangement of believing that what is portrayed is enough, that it is down market Scream but without the warmth of character, in a way it could be thought of a film made for Hammer House of Horror when they had nothing else to offer and were scratching around for ideas.

A film that wants to be a cheerleader for noble movements and intentions but does not fulfil its obligations to the those it wishes to include in its anger, in its outrage. Black Christmas is, if anything, a pale imitation of what it set out to be.

Ian D. Hall