| Errors | Missing | Unverified | Supported |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
Before directing A Christmas Story (1983), Bob Clark directed the following feature films: She-Man: A Story of Fixation (1967), Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things (1972), Deathdream (aka Dead of Night) (1974), Black Christmas (1974), Breaking Point (1976), Murder by Decree (1979), Tribute (1980), Porky's (1981), and Porky's II: The Next Day (1983). He also directed the short film The Emperor's New Clothes (1966).
Bob Clark was an incredibly versatile director who worked in several vastly different genres before finding immortality with the 1983 classic A Christmas Story. His career prior to 1983 is often divided into his early low-budget horror films and his massive commercial success in the "teen sex comedy" genre.
Here are the specific films Bob Clark directed before A Christmas Story:
This was Clark’s first notable foray into horror. It is a low-budget, independent film shot in Florida. It follows a group of theater actors who travel to a remote island graveyard to perform a ritual to wake the dead. While it begins as a dark comedy, it shifts into a genuine zombie film. It is notable for its grim ending and for being one of the early entries in the 1970s "living dead" subgenre.
Often cited by critics as one of Clark's best works, this is a somber horror film that serves as an allegory for the Vietnam War. The story concerns a soldier named Andy who is reported killed in action but mysteriously returns home to his family. However, he is cold, withdrawn, and eventually revealed to be a decaying undead entity that must consume blood to stay "alive." It is a poignant, disturbing film featuring early makeup effects by Tom Savini.
This film is arguably Clark's most influential work. It is widely considered one of the very first "slasher" films, pre-dating Halloween by four years. Set in a sorority house during Christmas break, it follows a group of women (including Olivia Hussey and Margot Kidder) being stalked by a mysterious killer. Clark utilized many tropes that would become genre staples, such as the "killer’s point-of-view" camera shots and the "the calls are coming from inside the house" plot twist.
Shifting away from horror, Clark directed this high-budget Sherlock Holmes mystery. It stars Christopher Plummer as Holmes and James Mason as Dr. Watson. The plot involves the duo investigating the Jack the Ripper murders, eventually uncovering a conspiracy involving the British government and the Freemasons. It is praised for its atmospheric production design and the chemistry between Plummer and Mason.
Based on the play by Bernard Slade, this was a prestige drama starring Jack Lemmon. Lemmon plays Scottie Templeton, a charismatic but irresponsible theatrical press agent who is dying of cancer and trying to reconcile with his estranged son. The film earned Jack Lemmon an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
In a massive tonal shift, Clark directed this raunchy teen comedy set in 1950s Florida. Despite being reviled by many critics at the time, it became a massive box-office phenomenon and the highest-grossing Canadian film for decades. It centers on a group of high school boys trying to lose their virginity and seeking revenge on a sleazy strip-club owner named Porky. Interestingly, the 1950s nostalgia Clark tapped into for Porky's would be refined into a much more wholesome atmosphere for A Christmas Story.
Released just months before A Christmas Story, Clark returned to direct the first sequel to his massive hit. While it retained the raunchy humor of the first, it also contained a surprisingly progressive subplot regarding a group of religious bigots and local politicians trying to shut down a high school Shakespeare festival.
The jump from the vulgarity of Porky's to the nostalgic warmth of A Christmas Story is often cited as one of the most drastic tonal shifts in a director's filmography. However, looking at his earlier work, you can see Clark’s ability to handle atmospheric horror, political thrillers, and character-driven dramas, which prepared him for the complex mix of humor and heart found in A Christmas Story.
The summary completely omitted this feature film, which stars Bo Svenson and Robert Culp and is a key example of the 'political thriller' genre the summary later claims Clark mastered.
The summary omitted Clark's actual feature debut, an exploitation film.