Horror

Episode 104 – Fantasy Horror

September 3, 2025

A Company of Wolves (1984), Nightbreed (1990), Errementari (2017)

As horror fans, we might not really think about the amount of horror elements that are in other sub-genres, such as fantasy. Sure, we all know titles like Conan the Barbarian (1982) that has a guy who turns into a giant snake, or Legend (1985) where one of the main characters is some sort of demon or devil, do those elements make it a horror film?

We all know that horror is used in many different genres of films, even some where the filmmakers themselves go out of their way to make sure to define it NOT as horror. But we know.

But when it comes to Fantasy / Horror, that’s where the story might be based on fairy tales or folklore, and definitely has some elements of horror in there, either in content or maybe just characters. The line can get kind of blurry. But we also know that if its entertaining, then does it really matter?

Take a listen as we discuss 3 titles that we all felt hit the Fantasy / Horror sub-genre, for a variety of reasons. Tune in and find out why.

Titles mentioned in this episode:

Episode 97: Chas Balun

May 28, 2025

There have been many horror writers that have been important to the genre, but few have had the outsized impact of the one and only Chas. Balun. Whether it was his work in Fangoria, Gorezone, or his own magazine Deep Red, even if you didn’t see his name at the head of the article, you knew it was him within a few sentences, by either by the tone of the writing, or maybe the films he was covering. Chas’ style was humorous and more than a little confrontational, but he was always waving the flag in support of movies that he felt were important and hadn’t received enough attention. Sure, they tended to be on the gory side, but for Chas. it wasn’t just about the gore.

Not entirely, anyway.

While the three of us knew his work and the impact it had on us personally, for this very special episode, we felt we needed to talk with other folks who were just as impacted by him and also knew him personally. In the second half of the show, you’ll hear from John Szpunar, author of Xeroxferox: The Wild World of the Horror Film Fanzine and Blood Sucking Freak: The Life and Films of the Incredible Joel M. Reed; Art Ettinger, editor at Ultra Violent magazine; and finally, Shawn Lewis, creator of Rotten Cotten and Eibon Press. They all share their own stories of Chas, and we all discuss the profound the impact Chas. had on us and on the horror genre in general. Don’t miss this one!

Films mentioned in this episode:

Episode 76: Al Adamson & Sam Sherman

August 8, 2024

Films discussed: Satan’s Sadists (1969), Brain of Blood (1970), Dracula vs. Frankenstein (1971)

From the mid-60’s until the late 70’s director Al Adamson and producer Sam Sherman made some of the most memorable low-budget horror and exploitation pictures to slide across American drive-in and grindhouse screens. Together they made films that not only exemplified genre, they also often transcend and blended genres, creating something that has stuck in the filmgoing collective consciousness for over half a century. And when Severin Films released The Al Adamson Masterpiece Collection boxed set in 2020, whole new generations were introduced to Al and Sam’s work, and those of us who were already familiar learned a thing or two (or twenty) and got to see them look better than they have since they sat on a double bill in a 70s sleaze palace.

All hail Al and Sam!

Movies mention in this episode:

Episode 72: 1950’s Giant Creepy Crawlers

June 25, 2024

Them! (1954), The Deadly Mantis (1957), and The Black Scorpion (1957)

The decade of the 1950s gave horror fans a ton of different giant monster flicks, but usually taking something seemingly harmless, such as ants or grasshoppers, but somehow, someway, are mutated into growing into gigantic proportions! We had giant spiders, praying mantis, mollusks, and anything these creative filmmakers could come up, just make them bigger and let them loose!

While modern critics, or even those at the time when these titles came out, passed them off as something for the kiddies and not to be taken seriously. And sure, they were definitely made under the term of exploitation, but when you really look at them, there is a lot of talented people behind and in front of the camera, and some really well-made and creative craftsmanship going on as well. Some aspects may seem and are very dated by today’s standards, but there is still a lot there, as well as a lot of entertainment value. So, grab your can of raid, a giant size flyswatter, and maybe even some industrial strength gloves to wear so you don’t have to tough any of these nasty little buggers and listen to us have a little fun discussing some big creepy crawlers!

Movies mentioned in this episode:

Episode 71 – Infectious Body Horror

May 29, 2024

Splinter (2008), Thanatomorphose (2012), and Contracted (2013)

When discussing films that deal with body horror, David Cronenberg and his work usually come up in the conversation. How can he not, when so many of his earlier films all dealt with some sort of body horror, mutations, and transformations? But there are plenty of films that go above and beyond (and even below) Cronenberg’s impressive genre efforts… sometimes even making us wonder why we’re watching them in the first place! Could it be that we just want to see how much grossness we can stomach? Or is there more to it?

Body horror is one of the most horrific of horror’s subgenres, tossing heaping handfuls of disgust into the usual bag of scares. And maybe it’s the hangover from the recent global pandemic, maybe it’s the fact that by a certain age all of us have watched someone close to us fight a serious illness, or maybe it’s just built into us by Mother Nature, but there’s something especially horrific about body horror from infection. But what do we get from watching it? Disgust, discomfort, and maybe a deeper understanding of human experience and anxieties? We can for sure guarantee the first two- so let’s dig in!

Disclaimer: by the end of the episode, you will be forgiven if you catch yourself looking at your body in a full-length mirror thinking “well, at least no maggots fell out of there.

Movies mentioned in this episode:

Episode 60 – 2023 Wrap Up

December 27, 2023

Another year ending means another Wrap Up episode where we go over our top picks for the year, as well as discussing some other titles we’ve seen in 2023. While most of the films we do cover here as our favorite viewings for this year are from the last few years, they are not all from 2023. But as we’ve pointed out many times before, if you’re watching it for the first time, no matter when it was released, as far as we’re concerned, it still counts as a new movie to you!

2023 has been a great year for the horror genre, especially when you look outside the U.S., which we all hope everyone out there does, because there are some incredible titles coming from Spain, Malaysia, Argentina, Japan, and more. So hopefully our listeners are not restrained by films that are “only in English”, because those folks are sadly missing out on some incredible cinema.

For this episode, we strongly suggest you have a notepad and pen close by to jot down some titles because we think we’re going to give you more than a few that we feel you should be checking out.

And a special HUGE thanks to those that continue to tune in and listen to us ramble on about the genre we love. With this being our 60th episode, it seems our following is growing day by day, so thank you for your continued support and in 2024, we’ll continue to help you Discover the Horror!

Films mentioned in this episode:

Episode 59 – Ghost Stories from Christmas

December 13, 2023

Tower of London (1962), Ghost Nursing (1982), and Stir of Echoes (1999).

Believe it or not, but it’s a tradition to tell spooky stories around Christmas time. Just think of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol! While some tales might be told to give one pause about how they are acting towards others, to maybe change your ways, or some told to pass on a message of hope, while others are there just to scare the crap out of you!

In this episode, we’re going to cover three completely different films that all deal with ghosts, in a variety of settings, times, and even countries! This just shows how international the ghost story is, though maybe changed around a bit depending on your beliefs, there is always a reason for these spirts to appear.

Movies mentioned in this episode are: