“BOB CLARK”
Bob Clark had himself an impressive career spanning from 1966 to 2004; he made a heck of a lot of films. There are certain titles he gets remembered for the most and also others we’d rather forget. But his name certainly comes up during the holidays because he has two quite popular Christmas themed films under his belt and they of course are A CHRISTMAS STORY and BLACK CHRISTMAS. Two very different films but that was what he did, he was able to successfully step in any type of genre. I am sure he’s entertained all of you readers at one time or another so let’s take a look at this amazing talent.
BEST WORK
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For the sake of keeping with the theme of this website and beloved genre, I am going to pick his best work that fits in with AITH. This I am sure is going to come as no surprise to anyone as his best genre piece is BLACK CHRISTMAS.
Surprising as it might seem I actually had never seen BLACK CHRISTMAS until last October where I added it to my first time horror viewing list based upon on recommendation of former news editor and current DVD Pub reviewer Mike Catalano. I had heard so much about BLACK CHRISTMAS and it is often associated as being one of the films that really launched the slasher genre. It was with such excitement that I watched this for the first time, and what a ride it was. Upon a re-watch it holds up extremely well, and if not even better.
The film does everything right, it is a slow burn film but it works in its favour. It takes place of the Holidays, at a sorority house. They begin to receive strange phone calls and at first they dismiss them. But as members of their group go missing, it seems clear that there is more going on. It may sound extremely typical but this was the one that started the trend. This one influenced all those other films. The killer is only shown through POV shots and overall this is a chilling film. It actually felt more like an Italian giallo than anything else and trust me that’s a good thing.
It builds up suspense, and it keeps you guessing through the whole way as you have likeable characters and you actually care what happens to them. This was a carefully crafted piece, and expertly put together by Bob Clark. He knew exactly what he was doing and it worked in spades. His cast was also fantastic with the likes of Olivia Hussey, Margo Kidder and John Saxton just to name a few. Everyone hits all those right notes, and despite its age it still managed to genuinely creep me out. The ending is easily one of the best you can get with a genre film, one that had the balls to go there. As a genre fan and a scrooge when it comes to the Holidays, this is a perfect remedy!
WORST WORK
I think I can safely say that Bob Clark’s worst film was his last with BABY GENIUSES 2. It is a sad thought but for the sake of keeping with the AITH theme, I won’t venture in to talk about that. However let’s try to think in terms of what we love here on the site, which actor in particular is a hero here? Ah Sly Stallone, and he starred in a Bob Clark film? He sure did, but how could that be bad? Well that film was RHINESTONE!
Oh boy is this film ever awful! It might actually rival BABY GENIUSES 2 in terms of how bad it actually is. There is nothing good about RHINESTONE, not in the least. This is 110 minutes of pure torture and I have a hard time believing that the man who gave us A CHRISTMAS STORY just one year before gave us this abomination! RHINESTONE is that little film that teamed Sly Stallone with Dolly Parton and yes those are two names that shouldn’t headline a film. They don’t make any sense together and on screen they actually make even less sense.
The premise for this story is rather silly, a singer named Jake (Dolly) makes a deal with the man she’s under contract with to find a regular Joe and make him into a country singer. She wants out of her contract and he wants a piece of her so the stakes are high! They find crazy cab driver in Nick (Sly), who is anything but country. So Jake takes Nick reluctantly under her wing and tries to teach him the ways of the country music. He fails miserably for the most part and acts like he’s drunk 24/7 (can’t say I blame him) but then somehow he begins to find he has a passion for the music. Just typing that out gave me a migraine, this film has nothing redeeming about it.
Sly has never been worse, this is without a doubt his worst performance. He mumbles his way through it and acts “Gary Busey” crazy. Dolly isn’t as bad however she isn’t really an actress. Their chemistry is zero, it doesn’t work at all. It looked as though they both had a blast on the film, but it was obvious that no one – Bob Clark included had no idea what they were doing. NEVER EVER watch this film!
TRADEMARKS
Get A Christmas Story on DVD here
Get A Christmas Story on Blu-ray here
Bob Clark’s films feel very different from one another, but one thing they do tend to have in common is they are actually well developed. Yes even something as horrid as RHINESTONE actually took the time to try and develop the situation and its characters. He does have a strong understanding of establishment and development in order to draw the audience in. One might mistake this for being slow, but I don’t see it that way at all. I find if I can get invested within the first twenty minutes of the film then it can probably keep me glued and I most likely won’t lose interest. This is something he did so well, and for the most part it worked effectively.
He was quite a visual director; care would be taken for every scene. There are some scenes in his films that are just stunning to look at and work extremely well. None perhaps were better choreographed than A CHRISTMAS STORY and BLACK CHRISTMAS. The distinct look of both of these films really helped tell the story and keep them with the audience. He had so much attention for detail, and the vibrant colours he utilized for his films are just an absolute joy to watch again and again.
HIDDEN GEM
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There were a few films on his filmography that I was not familiar with, so I took it upon myself to find them and watch them. The one that stuck out the most and the one that has the coolest title is CHILDREN SHOULDN’T PLAY WITH DEAD THINGS. Now I had heard about this film from quite early on in my life but I had never had the motivation to track it down. My interest did stem from the title alone and I only recently found out it was actually a Bob Clark film (he’s credited as Benjamin Clark here). This was one of his earlier films, and hints of things to come were ever present.
As I mentioned above Clark took the time to establish his films and he does that here although not quite as well defined. It does take a little too long to get started but the quirkiness of the characters certainly helps to keep interest. A bunch of teenagers go to a deserted island (don’t they know any better?) and they wind up resurrecting the dead! Do you really need to know anymore? The acting isn’t the best, those that try succeed, those that have no idea what they are doing come off as entertaining and unintentionally hilarious. The zombies in this film were actually rather creepy and they were handled so well. The final act is absolutely fantastic and a testament to Clark and his early talents. Definitely a film worth checking out if you can find it.
OVERALL
Bob Clark was an amazing filmmaker, he has given us so much, stretched over many genres. While his later years in the business weren’t his best, we can look back at his career and remember it fondly. His passing in 2007 was tragic, and a true talent was lost that day but he left behind a marvelous legacy one that will certainly live on for generations to come.