Holiday horror is a mixed bag. For every acknowledged gem (Rare Exports, Better Watch Out), there exist some seriously awful yuletide tales (Santa Claws, To All A Good Night). Occasionally though, a film will get it so right that it establishes a template for the films that followed. Such is the case with the cult classic BLACK CHRISTMAS(1974). Criminally overlooked, this film by Bob Clark is typically recognized for establishing some of the most well-known tropes of the slasher genre. But it is its transgressive female characters that really steal the show and leave us asking why these characterizations didn’t become the standard.

In this Horror Homeroom Conversation, we’re kicking it back to 1974 with the ultimate holiday horror film, BLACK CHRISTMAS and considering how the depictions of women in horror might be different had this film had gone mainstream.