First up is my new venture with my old friend Ronald Dzerigian. In Cambridge
& Wishon we discuss the obsessions from our childhood that have shaped who
we are today. In this premiere episode we talk about Star Wars
figures, Harry Houdini, Movie Monsters by Ormsby, Joseph Merrick, The
Muppets, and the Alien Movie Novel.
Next up is the ten episode limited series on Police Squad! (1982) with my
podcast buddies and Weirding Way Media big-wigs Mike White and Chris Stachiw.
In the first episode we go back to Airplane! (1980) where the ZAZ team and
Leslie Nielsen first worked together.
Hit the LinkTree on the right of your screen to find where these shows are
playing.
The Mickey Rourke love continues with this episode on Barbet Schroeder's 1987 film Barfly. Scripted by author Charles Bukowski Barfly follows drunk poet Henry Chinaski (Rourke) as he traverses the bars, alleys, and roominghouses of L.A.'s Skid Row. Along the way he meets kindred spirit Wanda (Faye Dunaway) and they love and fight their way through life's ups and downs. Barfly is a surprisingly warm and humorous tale about those living on the outskirts of society.
Heather Drain and Anthony King join me to discuss the film, Bukowski's writing, problematic artists, and the beauty of art.
It's been a long time coming (two and a half years, if anyone's counting) but the Mickey Rourke Love-Fest is finally here. 1987 was a big year for Rourke with three films hitting the big screen between April and October. Two of which happen to be HUGE favorites of mine, including this one.
On this episode I am joined by Mike White and Cullen Gallagher to discuss Alan Parker's adaptation of the 1978 novel Falling Angel by William Hjortsberg. A combination of horror and noir Angel Heart (1987) follows Harry Angel (Rourke) as he tries to track down the one-time famous crooner Johnny Favorite. Angel's client Louis Cyphre (Robert DeNiro) means to make good on the "contract" he made with Johnny before he was drafted and ended up wounded and shell-shocked. The film also stars Lisa Bonet as Epiphany Proudfoot, Charlotte Rampling as Margaret Krusemark, Dann Florek as Herman Winesap, Michael Higgins as Dr. Fowler, and Pruitt Taylor Vince as Det. Deimos.
You can check out the Fangoria article here (starts on page 26) to see some pictures of the deleted scenes discussed in the episode.
The Big Move has officially happened. Wake Up Heavy is now part of the Weirding Way Media podcast network along with podcast friends The Kulturecast and The Projection Booth. There are many other wonderful shows already attached to the network so please check it out!
If you are having trouble listening to the show via iTunes (which I have experienced myself) it is most likely due to the ads present at the beginning of the show. I would never suggest anyone change their computer's safety protocols just to listen to my silly little show, but I would suggest using another podcast platform. WUH is available nearly everywhere you can listen to podcasts, many of which you can find on the WUH Spreaker homepage, OR via the WUH LinkTree. You can always listen to the show right here on the website.
The WUH Patreon page has also been updated and will feature all future episodes without ads, if that bothers you. On many podcast platforms you can simply skip ahead (most ad breaks are a minute long) but patronage will help pay for the WUH Zoom account, and other annual costs. The Patreon membership is a measly $12/year.
So far I'm very happy about this change, and really excited to be a part of this cadre of shows. I hope that loyal listeners will stick with the show, and check out some of the other Weirding Way podcasts. Thank you for listening!
Come and celebrate the four year anniversary of Wake Up Heavy with this
Very Special Episode on a film in my
Top Ten of All Time list. Chris Stachiw
(The Kulturecast)
and Mike White (The Projection Booth Podcast) join me to discuss Jonathan
Demme's 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs.
Written by Ted Tally and based on the novel by Thomas Harris, Silence stars Jodie Foster as Clarice Starling, an FBI trainee, Scott Glenn as Special Agent Jack Crawford, Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal Lecter, and Ted Levine as Jame Gumb, aka Jamie Gumb, aka John Grant, aka Jack Gordon, aka Buffalo Bill. The film follows Starling as she matches wits with Lecter in an attempt to track down a notorious serial killer before he can kill and skin his next victim. The film was a huge financial and critical success and went on to win “The Big Five” categories at the 1992 Academy Awards.
Chris Stachiw (The Kulturecast)
and
Andy Gnosis join
me on an epic episode devoted to The Amityville Horror (1979),
its two sequels, and the 2005 reboot with Ryan Reynolds. PLUS, we can't help
but talk about the two incidents that inspired the films, the DeFeo murders
and the Lutz family's haunting claims.
And finally the third volume of WDIRT episodes is now available as separate episodes. Again.
WDIRT V3E1: Eyes of Fire (1983)
Here's another instance of my stupidity: I saw the very intriguing video box image for Eyes of Fire probably 50 million times back in my teens and never took a chance on renting it. Dumb, Mark, just plain dumb! This is one fascinating oddity that has never really gotten its chance to shine. The film didn't get very positive reviews when it came out, died at the box office, and wasn't given a VHS release until 1987. At that point it gained a cult following, but once again got buried in obscurity. If you like The Witch you should definitely check this one out!
WDIRT V3E2: Xtro (1982)
WUH came back from hiatus with a new WDIRT episode on Harry Bromley Davenport's nutso early-80s Alien rip-off that's actually so much more than that. Filled with too many WTF moments to count, and some of the most inspired and gloopy SFX from the era, Xtro would have damaged my brain as a kid. Now that I'm older I can soak in this odd-ball treasure with wild abandon.
WDIRT V3E3: Alone in the Dark (1982)
The last WDIRT in Volume 3 is on Jack Sholder's quirky slasher-home-invasion hybrid Alone in the Dark. It's got Martin Landau as a pyromaniac ex-preacher, Jack Palance as a paranoid POW, Erlind van Lidth as a hulking child-molester, and the mysterious hockey-mask-wearing killer known as The Bleeder. Donald Pleasence rounds out the cast as the equally nutty psychiatrist Dr. Leo Bain.
The second volume of WDIRT episodes is now available as separate episodes. Again.
WDIRT V2E1:Alice, Sweet Alice (1976)
This slightly sleazy, giallo-esque proto-slasher gained notoriety for starring Little Brooke Shields. But it was the anti-Catholic sentiment and shocking violence that got it condemned. Director Alfred Sole borrows from Hitchcock, throws in some Don't Look Now and tops it all off with a creepy masked killer. Enjoy!
[EPISODE CORRECTION: Jason Patric and Joshua John Miller are half-brothers, not step-brothers.]
WDIRT V2E2:Let's Scare Jessica to Death (1971)
After a stay in a mental institution, Jessica, along with her husband and their friend, moves from Manhattan to Connecticut in hopes that her fragile mental state will improve. They encounter a mysterious stranger squatting in their new home, strange, hostile men covered in bandages, and a mute girl, all of whom may be the victims of a century old vampire. Will Jessica escape alive and with her sanity in tact? p.s. There's outtakes at the end of this one! :P
WDIRT V2E3:The Gate (1987)
Why didn't I rent this? Apparently I'm a dingus. "It's The Evil Dead, for kids!"--Mark Begley. 'Nuff said.
THEY'RE BACK! As discussed on the WUH: February 2022 episode I have decided to re-release all WDIRT episodes in their original form: as short, individual episodes.
WDIRT episodes are quick takes on movies I passed on as a teen, have
seen since, and then wondered: WHY DIDN'T I RENT THIS (or "that",
depending on what my brain made me say)?
WDIRT V1E1:The Beast Within (1982)
Philipe Mora's films are quite varied, but they all share a certain bizarre quality. TBW is no exception. I remember the box art for this one so distinctly but never took the plunge. I wish I had because it's a very unique horror film from one of the busiest years for the genre. Plus, those bladder effects!
WDIRT V1E2:Messiah of Evil (1973)
From the screenwriting power duo who brought you Howard the Duck, it's the 1973 (or is it 1971? or maybe 1974?? or...) oddball Messiah of Evil (orSecond Coming? or Revenge of the Screaming Dead? or Return of the Living Dead?? or the sublime Dead People???).
Any way you slice it this is one kooky flick. If little 13-year-old
Mark had laid his eyeballs on this one he might have grown up to be a
weirdo! Oh, wait... ;)
WDIRT V1E3: Deranged (1974)
Ah, Ed Gein, that perpetual paradigm of perversion spawned myriad torrid tales of terror, including, but not limited to, Psycho, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and Silence of the Lambs.
His horrific happenings may have been presented in their truest and
most disturbing form in this wicked number from 1974 helmed by Alan
Ormsby, starring Roberts Blossom, and produced in part by Bob Clark. I
think this one looked just a bit too on the nose for young Markie back
in the '80s. [Check out the recent feature length episode on Deranged with Mike White and Chrsi Stachiw.]
More #BegleyOnBegley Action is coming your way! And more #SchraderOnBegley Action to boot! Coming in under the wire for BOBAM (just pretend it's a Leap Year) with a quickie on Cat People (1982). Schrader's slick, colorful remake is a great watch, despite the icky incest plotline. Ed Begley, Jr. gets to have some fun in this, until... well, just listen.
Also with Nastassja Kinski, Malcolm McDowell, Ruby Dee, John Heard, Annette O'Toole, Lynn Lowry, Frankie Faison, and John Larroquette.
This episode is a little bit #BegleyOnBegley Action Month and a little
bit WDIRT and a whole lot of f-words. I take a look at Paul Schrader's
Blue Collar (1978) which is sort of a heist film, but mostly a
hard-hitting take on labor relations in the auto industry.
Zeke (Richard Pryor), Smokey (Yaphet Kotto), and Jerry (Harvey Keitel) have
had enough of the awful conditions on the line of the auto factory where they
work. The treatment they get from their union isn't any better so they hatch a
plan to rob their local's safe. Also starring Lucy Saroyan, Harry Northup, Cliff DeYoung, and, of course, Ed Begley, Jr.
Sometime last year Chris asked me to program a month of shows for February
2022 over at The Kulturecast and I was both honored and excited to take a
crack at it. I pondered a number of different themes: favorite
director, favorite actor, only movies I've never seen, movies with people who
share my birthday, etc. etc. etc. But then an obvious theme presented itself,
which would also cover some of the other ideas I'd run through my head. Chris
asked me early on, as many people do, if my name was pronounced the same as Ed
Begley, Jr.'s, which I affirmed. This prompted him to mention his disdain for
the film Transylvania 6-5000, which I had to admit I've never seen. This has since become a running gag between us, and so I thought, "Well, Ed's been in some great movies so I'll
make Chris watch four of those." I then set about to pick four from the vast and varied Ed Begley, Jr. filmography (330 acting credits!).
I didn't necessarily pick films with big Begley roles (these are mostly bit
parts) but they do represent films that hit childhood nostalgia, feature a
favorite actor or director, and one that I'd never seen.
First up is Now You See Him, Now You Don't (1971), one of Disney's Dexter Riley (Kurt Russell) films, which I
absolutely loved as a kid. Mike White from The Projection Booth Podcast joined
us for this episode. Enjoy!
Next up is Cockfighter (1974), directed by Monte Hellman. If you listen to my show you've heard me talk about this one. A bunch. Ed Begley, Jr. plays Tom Peeples, a shiftless hillbilly who gets his comeuppance and then some! This time Chris and I are joined by Cullen Gallagher for a rollicking good time.
Citizens Band (1977) was the "new-to-me" selection for Begley on Begley Action Month. Directed by Jonathan Demme with a stacked cast of Demme regulars and 1970s character actors (including WUH favorite Roberts Blossom) CB is a charming slice-of-life look at a small Nebraska town obsessed with CB radios. Ed Begley, Jr. plays The Priest, who believes in G-O-D and not in F-C-C.
Hardcore (1979) our last entry for Begley on Begley Action Month is now here! Ed Begley, Jr. has a glorified cameo, but still manages to be memorable as "Soldier" in a "porno" within the film. Schrader's essay on Calvinism vs. pornography was one of my favorite new-to-me watches of 2020 and have wanted to chat about it ever since.
Get to know
Heather Drain
(aka
Mondo Heather) as
she joins me to discuss an instrumental film from her youth,
Return of the Living Dead(1985). Dan O'Bannon's punk rock zombie classic takes center stage here, but we
also get some horror movie background from Heather. This includes an early
horror movie memory, how she went from movie lover to movie writer, and her
admiration for film and music icons such as Udo Kier, Clu Gulager, The Damned,
and Charles Rocket.
Why spend hours piecing together an episode with songs featured throughout WUH2021? And run the risk of copyright infringement?? Except to get some cheap plays on the ol' Stat-o-Meter? Especially when you can just create a Spotify playlist???? Okay, I was looking forward to adding some clips and other fun stuff on the WUH: Tunes (2021), but this is easier and safer. I was able to add all but two songs, which will end up on the 2021 Wrap-up Episode instead (plus the clips and other fun stuff). Enjoy!
Anthony King (The Cult Movies Podcast) returns to the show to discuss Rolling Thunder (1977). Directed by John Flynn from a script by Paul Schrader and Heywood Gould,
based on an original story by Schrader. Rolling Thunder stars
William Devane as Major Charles Rane who has returned to his home of San Antonio
after seven years as a POW in Viet Nam. He realizes quickly that his wife has
moved on, and that his son barely remembers him. During a robbery of his home
his hand is mangled, and his family is slaughtered. With nothing left to live
for, he sets out on a dangerous path for revenge. The film also stars Tommy Lee
Jones, Linda Haynes, James Best, and Luke Askew.
On this final episode Samm Deighan joins Mike and me to discuss
Deathdream, which was filmed on the heels of CSPWDT in 1972, but not released until 1974, after Deranged. Bob Clark directed from a script by Ormsby, who once again created the make-up effects with help of first-timer Tom Savini.
Deathdream aka Dead of Nightet al, is the story of Andy Brooks (Richard Backus) who is killed in Viet Nam, but willed back to life and back home by his grief-stricken mother. As with most "Monkey's Paw" inspired tales, this does not bode well for Andy or those he cares about. Also starring John Marley and Lynn Carlin as Andy's parents, Anya Ormsby as his sister, and Jane Daly (both from CSPWDT) as his old girlfriend. Ormsby, Clark, and Jeff Gillen all have cameos.
On this episode
Chris Stachiw
joins Mike and me to discuss
Deranged: Confessions of a Necrophile, a very faithful telling of the Ed Gein story. Ormsby wrote the script
and co-directed the film with Jeff Gillen (an Ormsby/Clark regular), with Bob
Clark acting as (an uncredited) producer. As with
CSPWDT
and Deathdream Ormsby also supplied much of the special make-up effects, with help
from a young up-and-comer named Tom Savini.
Roberts Blossom plays Ezra Cobb, a middle-aged mid-westerner who has been
sheltered and coddled by his domineering religious zealot of a mother. When
she dies, Ezra is left to his own warped devices and starts to lose what
little he had left of his sanity. This leads to grave-robbing, morbid arts and
crafts, and, ultimately, murder. With Clark regulars Leslie Carlson, as an
intrepid news correspondent, and Marian Waldman, as a potential love-interest
for Ezra.
Why yes, I have talked about Deranged before. Might be
interesting to see what I said back on this early WDIRT episode.
Welcome to the first in a three-episode series on the early horror
films of Alan Ormsby and Bob Clark. The series-long co-host is
Mike White,
from
The Projection Booth Podcast, with
Heather Drain,
Chris Stachiw, and Samm Deighan joining us for one of the three episodes,
respectively. Also included in each episode is a portion of an interview with
Simon Fitzjohn,
who wrote I'm Going to Kill You, a
book on the films of Bob Clark. Simon also supplied the fun promotional "menu" for the player image of this
episode.
On this episode
Heather Drain
joins Mike and me to discuss
Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things, a low-budget horror/comedy inspired in part by Night of the Living Dead (1968). Bob Clark wrote and directed
the film, with script contributions from Alan Ormsby. Ormsby also designed and
created the make-up effects and plays Alan, the leader of a Miami theater
troupe.
Alan, an egomaniacal tyrant, takes the troupe to an island graveyard to
perform a Satanic ritual that will raise the dead, whom he wants to use as slaves.
But before the real ritual begins he scares the rest of the group with help from Roy
and Emerson, two other troupe members, hamming it up as ghouls. After everyone is
properly frightened, and pissed off at Alan, they return to their cabin with
an actual corpse named Orville. Has the summation of spirits really worked? Or is Alan just having more fun at everyone else's expense? Tune in
and find out.
Anthony King, host
of
The Cult Movies Podcast, pays a visit to WUH Headquarters and brings along a movie that
traumatized him as a child, but has since become one of his favorites. On this
Special Guest episode we talk about John Landis's 1982 classic horror/comedy
film An American Werewolf in London, Anthony's show, Jenny Agutter, and why Grandma should always keep the bedroom door closed.
Chris invited me back to The Kulturecast to discuss the new Fear Street Trilogy on Netflix. Having never read an R.L. Stine book in my life I figured I was the perfect co-host! Haha.
"We take another break before TV Movie Month with a trilogy of films that reinvigorates the horror genre and queer identity in the genre: Fear Street. Split into three films, they follow the parallel stories of Shadyside and Sunnyvale, towns torn apart due to a witch's curse. After the witch's curse begins again, a group of teens must figure out a way to stop the curse and save Shadyside. Wake Up Heavy's Mark Begley joins Chris to talk all about the films, the films they reference, and the kills."
Macabro (1980) (aka Macabre, aka Frozen Terror) is a New Orleans set horror film from director Lamberto Bava, the son of
famed Italian director Mario Bava. Although Lamberto helped his father direct
Shock (1977), Macabro was his first official solo
job as director. The film stars Bernice Stegers (XTRO) as Jane Baker, a woman who's adultery leads to tragic consequences, and
Stanko Molnar (A Blade in the Dark) as the blind land-lord of the building where she resides. Veronica Zinny, in
her only role, is perfectly cast as Jane's troubled and troublesome
daughter.
This one goes to some very dark places and I don't know what Young Mark would
have thought about it back in the VHS glory days. Old Mark things it's pretty
fascinating.
Spaghetti Western month continues with a look at the
Sabata films -- it's something of a trilogy, but not really. And
some might say that there are seven films in the series… but, really, there’re
just two. The original film, Sabata (1969), was written and
directed by Gianfranco Parolini and stars Lee Van Cleef as the titular
gunfighter who’s no stranger to gadgets.
Mark Begley and Heather
Drain join Mike to discuss the three official Sabata films and four of the
knock-offs which have little to nothing to do with the titular gunfighter."
Please visit
The Projection Booth
for more amazing, in-depth episodes on a wide variety of films.
I really like showing Cleo some of my favorite Classic Horror films, and this happens to be one of my all time faves. On this episode we take a look at John Carpenter's 1982
practical effects masterpiece The Thing. I love this movie, but where will it rank for Cleo amongst the other Classics we've watched? You'll just
have to have a listen.
Oh, and get your WUH swag over on TeePublic, send me a screenshot of your purchase and I'll send you a pin and some stickers.
This is one of those episodes. A good half-hour of me just
flap-jawin'. If you like watching paint dry, you'll love hearing me talk about
painting our house. But there's also movie recs, lots o' clips, and general
news and notes. Sorry for being absent during May, but I mean, I gave y'all
FOUR EPISODES last week.
Quick note, I've had a pretty serious amount of plays this month, more than
any previous month since the inception of the show. It'd be cool to hit 1,000
plays in June, so listen to this episode if only to help WUH reach that
goal.
I could not find the Letterboxd list of the films featured in
Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror, but I will keep looking.
Yes, that's the Heavy House painted in Dark Engine. I'm calling our
style, "Mid-Century Macabre."
I made another trip to the Kulturecast, but this time Chris has been so
kind as to share the episode with me for the WUH audience.
On this episode we discuss the latest entry in the
Conjuring universe,
The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It (2021), as well as the previous entries, the Annabelle films,
The Nun and La Llorona. All, or most, of the films are currently streaming on HBO Max.
The Kulturecast Crossover continues with this look at Tobe Hooper's
1982 horror classic Poltergeist. Chris Stachiw joins WUH to
talk about the movie that traumatized him as a wee-one and turned him off of
horror for years. We also delve into the sequels and the 2015 remake.
Our Crossover also includes an episode of The Kulturecast on the new
Conjuring film, and its cinematic universe. Look for that episode soon in the
Wake Up Heavy
stream.
Chris keeps asking me back, and I keep accepting. These appearances give me an
opportunity to branch out and watch some films I wouldn't normally get around
to, or talk about on WUH.
First up is my discussion with Chris and Mike White about
Citizen Kane, a film neither Chris nor I had watched prior.
On this episode of WUH we discuss the 1977 film
Looking for Mr. Goodbar. Goodbar was written and directed by Richard Brooks, based on
the 1975 novel by Judith Rossner, which is loosely based on the real life and
death of Roseann Quinn. The film stars Diane Keaton as Theresa Dunn, a twenty
something woman living in The Big City who leads a “double life.” A devoted
teacher of deaf students by day, Theresa frequents bars and discos at night
seeking out the company of men, if just for one night. Richard Gere and Tom
Berenger, in early roles, play two of those men. Tuesday Weld and William
Atherton also star. Due to music rights issues Goodbar has never been released on DVD or Blu-Ray, and is not available to stream.
In each episode of this series my daughter Cleo and I will be hopping around
the Godzilla and King Kong Franchises (mostly Godzilla) and talking about two
or three films. Naturally we started with their epic Match-Up in the 1962 Toho
film King Kong vs. Godzilla. We'll be discussing that film in comparison with Mothra vs. Godzilla
which came out two years later. Each new episode will be posted here. Find out
at the end of the series which film rules them all! The songs featured are King Kong by the Kinks, and Mothra's Theme.
WUH: Godzilla vs... King Kong & Mothra:
Cleo's back to talk about two more Monster Battle Movies, and this time we have two appearances from Kong! First up is King Kong Escapes from 1967, co-produced by Toho Studios and Rankin/Bass! Check out the Rankin on Bass podcast's episode on the same film below. Cleo and I finish up this episode on the just-released Godzilla vs. Kong. Songs featured this go around are King Kong by Jimmy Castor, Go Go Godzilla by Blue Oyster Cult, and King Kong Song by ABBA.
It's been a little over a year since quarantine began. As I've discussed
numerous times over this past year my brain has been a little fuzzy due to this,
"new normal." My movie viewing, and therefore, my episode output, has greatly
reduced. When I do have the time to watch a film I tend to seek out films I've
enjoyed from my past. "Comfort films," as they say. All of this, along with my
recent ruminations on past obsessions, got me to thinking about what I watched
as a kid, and more specifically, how I watched things.
The second part of this episode loosely ties into the above, but is also a
celebration and acknowledgement of the 10-year Anniversary of
The Projection Booth Podcast. Like those stacks of movie books I poured over as a teen (see below) TPB
has introduced me to numerous films I had never even heard about, let alone
seen. I discuss those, plus some of my favorite episodes of the show.
In my Watch List at the end of the episode I forgot to mention the name of the
film with Lulu Wilson and Kevin James. It's called Becky. Blame it on the Smooth Brain.
BONUS EPISODE:
I found that movie! Have a listen to find out what it is, as well as how my memory vs. the reality of the film differ. And to check out the story about the comic book I re-discovered after more than 35 years you can find it here.
We continue Noiruary with a Jim Thompson adaptation that is next to impossible to find, primarily because it's never been released on DVD: The Kill-Off. The film takes place in a seaside New Jersey town that has fallen on hard times and features even harder people. It's a slice of salacious Americana that only Jim Thompson could have written. Wake Up Heavy's Mark Begley joins Chris to talk about the performances, the lack of physical releases, and other Jim Thompson adaptations.
Instead of trying to remember more of my scattered and inaccurate
memories of my longtime fascination with DEVO
I got the opportunity to speak with someone who turned their obsession
into a job... with DEVO! Michael Pilmer, aka Devo-Obsesso, stopped by to chat all things DEVO, his longtime love of the band, their music, and what they meant to him from a
young age. Find out what took him from DEVOted fan and collector to meeting and working for the group.
"Starring Demi Lovato and the Jonas Brothers, the film follows Demi Lovato as Mitchie, a talented young singer who attends the titular camp to further her musical training. At the camp, she learns to find herself and becomes romantically entangled with one of the Jo Bros."
A full year ago, on the
WUH: Twenty Nineteen
episode, I talked about wanting to do some shows in 2020 on the myriad
obsessions I entertained back in my youth. That never really happened. It's
strange listening to that episode now after the year we had, and realizing no
one knew what was coming down the pike, myself included. But those old
obsessions have begun to percolate again, so instead of a year-end wrap-up I'm
going to touch on some of those, as well as some other interesting(?) things
from my childhood.
A note about the player image. Yes, that's me. And yes, I'm f@#king adorable!
Check out my
Lettrboxd
account for lists and diary entries from 2020.
Need a little levity in your day? I know I do! I got to guest on Chris
Stachiw'sThe Kulturecast to discuss 18 Again, one of a good handful of
body-swap films from the late 1980s. Oh, and we talk a little about a few of
the other ones as well.
Here's my last TPB appearance of 2020 (and the last one till December 2021!).
From TPB's site:
Special Guest: Miguel Llanso Guest Co-Hosts: Mark Begley, Chris
Stachiw
We're looking at
Miguel Llanso's Crumbs (2015),
the story of a post apocalyptic future where items from the past are given
special significance as our hero, Candy (played by Daniel Tadesse), goes on a
quest, first to see the witch and then to see Santa Claus.
A mish-mash recipe for your Thanksgiving holiday festivities. Two parts Why
Didn't I Rent This, one part Cleo, a sprinkle of watch list recs, and a dash of
DEVO. Happy(?) Thanksgiving from the WUH Family to yours!
And enjoy this TV spot for Motel Hell, and the video for DEVO's Freedom of Choice. Did both of these put the whammy on my 11-year-old brain in the Summer of 1980? We may never know the answer, but I'd like to think so.
WUH x TPB + Cronenberg = An Awesome October (Part 2)!
Just four years and two films later Cronenberg would direct what some consider
to be his first masterpiece, The Brood (1979). Drawing from his
own tumultuous divorce and custody battle Cronenberg chills viewers via the
frigid Toronto landscape and disquieting imagery of Frank and Nola Carveth's
upended world.
The Brood is the story of the Carveth family and how the sins of
the past visit the children of the next generation. Frank (played by Art
Hindle) and his wife Nola (played by Samantha Eggar) have separated. She’s
under the care of Dr. Hal Raglan (played by Oliver Reed). He’s the head of the
Somafree clinic and has mastered the art of psychoplasmics where negative
thoughts and feelings are manifested physically. These come in the form of
rashes or lesions or, in the case of Nola, a group of odd creatures who go on
a murderous rampage when her ire is raised.
I've teamed up with Mike White yet again, this time for a crossover event
between WUH and TPB on two films by acclaimed director David
Cronenberg. First up is Shivers (1975).
After directing two experimental films (Stereo and
Crimes of the Future) David Cronenberg realized that if making movies would be his vocation he
would need to do something "commercial." And at the time commercial, more
often than not, meant exploitation. Inspired in part by a nightmare he'd had
Cronenberg set about to write a screenplay for the Canuxploitation Pioneers at
Cinepix. What emerged was Shivers, which introduced audiences and critics to a new kind of horror film and
courted controversy not only for its subject matter but also for its manner of
funding. In Shivers Cronenberg's secular world view and body, or venereal, horror is
present from the start.
Shivers stars Paul Hampton as Dr. Roger St. Luc, Lynn Lowry as Nurse Forsythe, Susan Petrie as Janine Tudor, Allan Kolman as Nick Tudor, and Barbara Steele as Betts, all residents of the luxury apartment complex Starliner Tower. The film also features the inimitable Joe Silver as Rollo Linsky. Dr. Emil Hobbes’ experiment with "helpful" parasites has gone awry and now the tenants of the Starliner are under attack by the polyamorous creatures. Can the residents of the Starliner stop the infection from spreading to nearby Montreal and beyond? Or do they even want to?
This episode also features an interview with Luke Aspell, author of the Shivers monograph from Auteur Publishing. Purchase your copy here.
No, I'm not giving a clinic on Cronenberg (I wouldn't presume to be an
expert all of a sudden) although, since March of this year I think I've taken
one myself! This is more of a primer for the upcoming Cronenberg Crossover event
with
The Projection Booth Podcast. Having read, watched, and absorbed so much Cronenberg over the last seven
months it only seems natural that all the connections in his work would settle
in and demand exploring. Plus, the title is a nice little pun since so many of
his early films feature a Clinic of one sort or another. And I like puns! AND I
get to use this awesome player image again! Win, win.
Look Ma, I made it! Here it is, my first appearance on The Projection Booth
podcast. Here's the description from their site:
"On this special episode of The Projection Booth we're looking at the 2019 film
from director
Orçun Behram, The
Antenna. The film stars Ihsan Önal as Mehmet, an overseer of an apartment
building in Turkey. We begin the film on the day when a new satellite dish is
being installed that is part of a new era for the country where the government
can now broadcast directly to its citizens’ televisions. Let’s just say that
this isn’t the utopia that was promised.
David Rodgers
and Mark Begley join Mike to discuss the the film which will play in select
theaters starting October 2, 2020 and on VOD starting October 20, 2020."
The Sender (1982) is a horror film directed by Roger Christian and starring Zeljko
Ivanek as The Sender, Kathryn Harrold as Dr. Gail Farmer, and Shirley Knight as
Jerolyn. Two years before Freddy terrorized the kids on Elm Street, John Doe 83
would project the power of his dreams onto the patients and staff of a mental
hospital in the town of Corinth.
John Doe 83
aka The Sender tries to commit suicide by walking into a lake with rocks in his
pockets. He ends up in a mental hospital where Dr. Gail Farmer instantly
sympathizes with him. John Doe’s mother, Jerolyn, has convinced her son that
his was a virgin birth and keeps him locked up at home in fear he will leave
her. The Sender can telepathically transmit his dreams into others, which
causes the receiver to hallucinate.
Most of the WDIRT episodes have been about movies I passed on in the VHS days, or like last time with Visiting Hours, didn’t remember seeing. In this case, though, I thought I had seen it, but nothing hit my memory banks when I finally got to watch it.
It's strange, strange times right now, and it's affecting everyone in myriad ways. For me, it's made it a little more difficult to record regular episodes, so I'm fashioning these shorter hodge-podge shows to keep in touch and say howdy. There will generally be some movie recs, maybe a chat with my daughter about things we've watched, and even some feelings about sheltering-in-place. All episodes will be posted here.
In 1983* Sam Raimi and Co. took the horror world by the neck and shook it until it begged for mercy. The Evil Dead caught the attention of Stephen King at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival and his pull-quote, "The most ferociously original horror film of 1982," placed it on every genre fan's must-watch list. Coverage from Fangoria, along with great notice from a string of festival appearances, helped solidify its notoriety.
Made on a shoe-string budget in the woods of Tennessee by a bunch of friends from Michigan, the movie was an exercise not only in scares and gore, but in moxie and gumption. Before the film was even begun the trio of Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and Rob Tapert formed Renaissance Pictures and took the business side of low-budget films seriously. They produced an instant classic that has withstood the test of time and spawned a franchise that has lasted 35 years.
Ash, his sister Cheryl, his girlfriend Linda, and they're friends Scott and Shelly take a little vacation to a dilapidated backwoods cabin and accidentally summon demonic forces. By the end of the night only Ash survives. Or does he? The Evil Dead may be short on story but it's long on dread, gore, and inventive film-making. Whether you're a die-hard fan of the original, like me, or a lover of the "better in every way" requel, like my guest, or even if you prefer Army of Darkness for some reason, you'll find something to like in this episode. Heck, I even like the 2010 reboot!
For this episode I am once again joined by Mike White from The Projection Booth Podcast. As mentioned in the episode you can also listen to Mike, along with Chris Stachiw, jaw on about Barney Miller and '85 Twilight Zone. And here's a video about the "Bollywood Evil Dead" Mike mentioned in the episode. Enjoy!
*The date of The Evil Dead is a bit confusing. The copyright date, which is what I'm using, is 1981. The film wasn't officially released until 1983. It played Cannes, and other festivals, during 1982.
The Tenant was directed by Roman Polanski, who also stars as Trelkovsky a mild-mannered file clerk looking for a new apartment in Paris during a housing shortage. He finds a not-quite-vacant room in an American-owned building, but the last tenant, Simon Choule, is clinging to life after throwing herself out of the apartment's window. When the apartment becomes available Trelkovsky moves in and his life becomes a nightmare of paranoia and delusion.
Much like Polanski himself, and Roland Topor who wrote the source novel, Trelkovsky is a Polish-Jew who has immigrated to Paris. His "otherness" becomes a source of derision for his neighbors, the apartment's management, the police, his coworkers, and even the denizens of a local cafe. Trelkovsky becomes convinced that everyone is trying to change him into Simone Choule and make him suffer the same fate. He finds solace with Mlle. Choule's friend Stella, played by Isabelle Adjani, but comes to believe she is in on the conspiracy as well. Are they trying to change him into Simone, or is it all in his head?
The Tenant has been lumped together with Polanski's other films, Repulsion and Rosemary's Baby, to form the so-called Apartment Trilogy. All three deal with isolated and insulated characters whose sanity cracks until they can no longer tell what is real and what is only in their imaginations.
For this episode I am joined by film journalist Anya Stanley. Ms. Stanley's work has been seen in Birth Movies Death, Rue Morgue, Dread Central, and several other film publications. She's currently a columnist for Fangoria, exploring horror from a gendered perspective with her column Rated XX/XY. You can find her on Twitter as @BookishPlinko. And here is her great piece Who Gives a Shit if the Oscars Don't Respect Horror?
