By Rick Garner

Blu-Ray Release of Original “Black Christmas”

Bob Clark’s notorious (and fans would add glorious!) cult classic “Black Christmas” ~ starring Olivia Hussey, Margot Kidder, John Saxon, and Andrea Martin ~ is now available on Blu-Ray disc (gotta love a film with the tagline, “If this movie doesn’t make your skin crawl…It’s on too tight!”). The 1974 classic, considered by many to be the granddaddy (it preceded the release of “Halloween” by four years) of the slasher film genre (although to earn “creepy/horror” points, it resorts to neither graphic nor gratuitous scenes that are the norm today), centers around a sorority house that’s being terrorized by a stranger who makes frightening phone calls and then murders the sorority sisters during Christmas break. Never far from the hearts of current day horror directors, it was mentioned in 2003’s “Saw,” and remade in 2006 with teen quasi-heartthrobs Oliver Hudson, Lacey Chabert, and Michelle Trachtenberg (with the delicious return of Andrea Martin).

The high-def release includes two hours of special bonus features including:

• Digitally re-mastered anamorphic video and newly created 5:1 Surround Stereo Audio
• Two original scenes with a new vocal soundtrack that were recently uncovered
• “The 12 Days of Black Christmas,” an all-new documentary featuring current interviews with Art Hindle, Doug McGrath and Lynne Griffin and more
• Separate interview segments with Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder
• Midnight Screening Q & A session with John Saxon, Bob Clark and Carl Sitter

It’s the perfect gift for the horror-film-loving, Bah, Humbug, I-hate-the-holidays person in your life ~ even if that person is you!

Head to www.somervillehouse.org/dvd.htm to order “Black Christmas”…after all, ‘tis the season for a slay ride!