I already wrote a review of the new Friday The 13th Remake for 2009 at my other blog but I didn’t comment on something I saw in the film, possibly a little inside joke or even a poke at Bill O’ Reilly? Or maybe it’s nothing and I’m reading too much into it.

One of the male characters in the film wears a T-shirt that prominently displays “Fuck Christmas” on it. Now if you know anything about wardrobe on a film set they are very specific about picking out clothing so someone beside the actor had to have chosen that shirt with that message to display.

I’m just guessing but it could be the producers’ or director’s quick jab at all of the of the “War on Christmas” hype by Christian Conservatives. Movies contain all sorts of inside commentary that you can only discover by listening to the audio commentaries after the DVD is released. I guess I’ll have to wait to validate my theory.

Rue Morgue is a horror movie magazine similar to Fangoria, but I would say less mainstream in that it doesn’t feel the need to put Terminator Salvation on the cover–is Terminator sci-fi or horror? I would say sci-fi myself, even if it is dark.

The article talks about the new trend in Christian Horror or what the editor of Christian-Fandom.org calls “safe horror.” In other words, horror with the bias of Christ. He also states that “safe horror” follows certain guidelines that doesn’t allow for sex, violence and foul language. …Sigh, all the good stuff.

It’s worth picking up a copy for the article because it gives a history of what I would call unrecognized Christian Horror. We’ve been seeing it since The Exorcist and The Omen, which if you think about it are explicitly Christian. These films are not “safe” though in that they aren’t afraid to truly horrify us instead of having demons poof into smoke like Frank Peretti’s comic book like stories of spiritual warfare.

I’m actually for “Christian Horror” but not safe horror. I’ve always said the Bible is X-rated. Feel free to make it into a movie and show it all in detail–see how good people feel about God and Christian love once they come out of the theater.

Unfortunately, Christians don’t have the guts to do just that. “Safe horror” is an excuse not to show what God is really about. Slaughtering people when he feels like it or when they don’t bend to his will. At least the Tim Lahaye novels have blood running in the streets concerning the apocalypse.