SILENT
NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT (1973)Director: Theodore Gershuny
Diamond Entertainment
SILENT
NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT (1973)Any film that starts off with some poor guy setting himself on fire in front of his home on Christmas Eve, can't be that bad! That's exactly how SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT commences as it relays the story of the Butlers, a wealthy but troubled New England family whose home was once used as an asylum. Twenty-something years later, as the house is to be sold by a big city lawyer (Patrick O'Neal), Wilfred Butler, an escaped nut comes home to visit by breaking in and hiding out there. He proceeds to terrorize the town with disturbing phone calls, as well as his homicidal tendencies.
Made up of a lot of flashbacks and plot twists, SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT was definitely a role model for later films like Bob Clark's BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974) and John Carpenter's HALLOWEEN (1978), though it suggests a nod towards PSYCHO as the character appearing to be the lead is massacred early on. Although a bit confusing and convoluted, the film is very atmospheric in a modern gothic sort of way, and look out for that money shot involving a broken glass during the sepia-toned flashback!
Filmed in Oyster Bay, Long Island, just miles away from where I pen this review, SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT has some nice performances by O'Neal, James Patterson, and Mary Woronov, but horror icon John Carradine is pretty much wasted (as he was a lot during the 70s) as a mute newspaper publisher who has to ring a bell to communicate. The film is also noteworthy for parading some of the Warhol factory (Ondine, Candy Darling, etc.) during the flashback sequence.
SILENT NIGHT, BLOODY NIGHT is an obviously really low budgeted, low-lit film, and this was always apparent during TV broadcasts and its video release by Paragon in the early 80s. I pulled out this VHS relic to compare it to Diamond's DVD release, and believe me, it's like night and day when comparing the two.
The Paragon tape is a totally dark, murky unwatchable mess with bleeding, unnatural colors. The Diamond disc--though far from perfect--has a much sharper, more detailed image and colors look as good as they'll probably ever look. Because of the low-lit photography, dark scenes are still too dark, but do not mutate into an ink blotch like on the Paragon video. There are strange stains on both releases (apparently the same print), but there're more prevalent on the much clearer DVD. Diamond has done a decent job with this well-remembered little film, and it's longtime fans shouldn't be too disappointed by the results, especially since the cost is well under $10.
I also noticed that the Diamond disc's credits are altered when compared with the old Paragon tape. The name of the original distributor--Cannon Films--is now obscured, as with various personnel, including Troma's Lloyd Kaufman, who served as one of the executive producers. There also some "extras" on the disc: ad taglines and bios of Carradine and O'Neal (making the unforgivable mistake of showing James Patterson's mug instead of the well-known actor). The menu also goes on to say how SILENT NIGHT is "A triumph in movie making." Well, maybe not a triumph, but an interesting thriller no doubt. (George R. Reis)