Silent Night, Bloody Night is an
eerie and disturbing little proto-slasher. Filmed in 1972 and
arriving in 1974, it predates even Black Christmas, yet
features several elements that have become familiar today: the
holiday setting, the menacing phone calls, the nebulous identity of
the killer, the "final girl". At the same time, its Gothic-style
focus on the tragic history of a big, creepy house places it at the
intersection of classic and modern approaches to the horror genre. At
worst, it's a curiosity; at best, it's a forgotten minor classic.
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