Talking to my friend Mike about horror theatre was an absolute joy! We talked about some of our shared favourites, plays that I ABSOLUTELY HATED and why we think horror on stage is so effective.
Full disclosure, my intro to this episode is quite teary and sad. I fully understand if you don’t want to hear that bit, so please skip to about 4 minutes in, when my chat with Mike starts. I missed it in my new intro, but content warning – there is mention of a play being “a suicide note”. There is no further discussion around this, but wanted to let you know :)
It’s always a joy to be on the Monsters Up North podcast, but especially when it’s to talk about my favourite movie of all time – Adam Green’s slasher masterpiece, Hatchet.
It was so lovely to talk to Trevor on the Shouty Brain podcast, a new podcast where Trev chats to fellow neurodivergent people about their lives “in a neurotypical world”.
Trevor is a fellow late-diagnosed AuDHD gremlin and it was great to have the space to vent, share experiences and be unapologetically myself. Poor Trev got the brunt of my excited yapping and over-sharing, but it was great to feel safe to do that.
My audio was absolutely terrible – I’m really not sure what happened! Hopefully it’s still listenable and you can enjoy my chat with the lovely Trevor, who is doing such brilliant work giving a platform for ND folk to share their stories.
I had the pleasure of chatting to the brilliant Jason Mohammad last week, while attending a podcast masterclass with the Jason Mohammad Academy and Screen Alliance Wales. We love a side-quest and we know I bloody love talking about being Welsh.
It was such an awesome opportunity and I learned loads! I recorded in a proper studio for the first time, with a two camera set-up and separate audio track. A new editing challenge for me. Unfortunately, it was so hot that the cameras overheated at different points, so I’ve popped some stills in 🙈
I love talking to people about being Welsh and we had the most brilliant chat about Welsh cakes, siarad cymraeg, our favourite beaches, identifying fellow Welshies in the wild and whether Caroline Street is Chippy Lane.
Shout-outs to Cardiff Bakestones for their Welsh cakes, Haven’t They Done Well? for the brilliant question I pinched from and WhoCult and Chapter for my imaginary perfect Welsh day.
The lovely Javid Rezai and Stella Talpo, Director and Producer and star of new “psycho-glitter” short The Belladonna joined me for a chat. We talked about Javid and Stella making movies together from the age of 7, a shared love of Paris Hilton (HONESTLY, the venn diagram of horror fans and Paris lovers is wild!) and ensuring a production remains authentic.
A female-led, queer, indie horror film will always get my attention and it’s a genuinely beautiful, moving short. Keep an eye out for it at a film festival near you!
I chatted to the wonderful Garreth Gibson of Gibson Graphix about being a neurodivergent artist, impressive collabs and getting turned down by Ben Stiller.
Despite the absolutely iconic imagery of Vincent Price as Dr Death, Madhouse is a film that has somehow slipped by me. The new release from Eureka Entertainment was the perfect way to see it for the first time – in HD, followed by an introduction to by horror novelist Stephen Laws, a video essay by horror and gothic scholar Mary Going and audio commentary by film historian David Del Valle.
As always, Vincent Price was a delight to watch. Price was quite possibly the most handsome, charismatic and magnetic actor to ever grace our screens. And seeing him alongside the equally legendary Peter Cushing is always a good time.
I’m sure someone will correct me if I’m wrong, but Madhouse is one the earliest meta, self-aware horror movies I’ve seen. Watching older genre films is always fascinating, seeing how much they have influenced other writers and directors. Surely Madhouse was a huge inspiration for Wes Craven when creating the genius work that is New Nightmare. I love anything that looks at film-making within film, especially from a 1970’s perspective.
Madhouse is a lot of fun and considering how much I’ve seen the image of Price as Dr Death over the years, I can’t believe I’d never seen the film. But this is why physical media is so important! New releases alert us to gems we’ve missed and now get to discover and enjoy and more importantly, in light of Sony’s nonsense this week, KEEP FOREVER!
It’s a beautifully shot film with wonderfully camp characters and performances. I really enjoyed it and definitely going to pick up the gorgeous limited edition Blu-ray next time I’m physical media shopping.
It’s always bloody lovely to guest on a podcast, but even bloody lovelier when it’s on one of your favourite podcasts. I chatted about the incredibly under-rated Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon, after the long-awaited sequel was announced. Hurrah!
I love chatting with Ben and Andy. They are both such good eggs and it’s always a laugh hanging out with them :)
Diabolic is a new religious horror, available in the UK from next week. After suffering terrifying blackouts, a young woman returns to the religious compound where she was raised. As she unravels the dark secrets of her past, an ancient ritual unleashes the vengeful spirit of a cursed witch.
I love horror about religion and I enjoyed Diabolic, because it’s the first time I’ve seen a movie focused around The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. While I don’t think Diabolic does anything ground-breaking, it’s really interesting to see a horror set outside of the usual Catholic and Christian churches. All I know about the Mormon church, I learned from The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and The Book of Mormon. So it’s safe to say, that’s not a lot!
Elise, played by Elizabeth Cullen who will star in Evil Dead Wrath, has escaped from a Mormon compound. She’s so desperate to rid herself of the blackouts that are seemingly caused by her trauma, she ill-advisedly returns to the community for a ritual to restore her memory. Nothing about this seems like a good idea, so it’s a little frustrating that not only Elise wants to go ahead, but her boyfriend and best friend come along for the ride. Strength in numbers, perhaps, but it is the first of many silly choices from the characters. The story is heavy on religious horror tropes, but I guess that’s what we’ve come to see.
What Diabolic does do really well, is give us beautiful sets and great practical sfx. It’s a really gorgeous film, with a lovely colour palette and atmospheric locations. I was really pleased to see so much practical work and it’s really effective – two of the things that are guaranteed to freak me out (as vague as possible – repeatedly banging your head and coughing up a hairball!) are present. And freak me out, they did. It was also really nice to see a queer storyline. I can’t speak to whether it was an accurate portrayal of the church’s response, or overall depiction of the church, but it added an interesting angle.
As predictable as the story felt at times, it’s still worth a watch to enjoy the visuals and experience a different type of religious horror. A solid 3 star movie!
Diabolic will be available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital from Monday 25th May. Thank you to Strike Media for letting me review the film!
The Devil’s Candy is a dark, atmospheric, disturbing horror that doesn’t get the flowers that it deserves. With a metal soundtrack, powerful performances and haunting visuals, it is an absolutely beautiful film.
The second feature from The Loved Ones and Dangerous Animals director Sean Byrne, The Devil’s Candy fits firmly into a subgenre that I love – metal horror. Painter Jesse and his family move into an isolated, rural home and his sudden artistic inspiration comes from an unexpected source. Jesse and his daughter are metalheads – long hair, tattoos and headbanging on the school run. It’s always nice to see metallers in a film that feel authentic – not what a fancy dress shop says we look like. Ethan Embry, who plays Jesse, is a heavy metal fan himself so it really was an authentic performance. There is an incredible original score from Michael Yezerski and a bangin’ soundtrack featuring Metallica, Sunn O))), Pantera, Machine Head and Slayer.
The Devil’s Candy is also visually stunning. The editing and cinematography masterfully juxtapose horrific acts with Jesse’s creative process. (The scene with the bathtub is just gorgeous.) The Satanic and religious imagery littered throughout is unsettling and works perfectly with the metal soundtrack and score. Dark imagery and dark music, paired with a loving family that feels full of light.
Ethan Embry as Jesse
The cast is small, but perfect. Ethan Embry is fantastic – he is able to balance the loving, devoted father and husband side of Jesse, with the “tortured artist” side without either ever feeling like a stereotype. The intensity of his performance is captivating and I think it’s Embry’s best role. Pruitt Taylor Vince is chilling as Ray, a genuinely intimidating presence who somehow elicits fear and sympathy. Shiri Appleby as Astrid and Kiara Glasco as Zooey are also brilliant as Jesse’s wife and daughter, anchoring him to reality.
Limited edition release from Second Sight
The ever-wonderful Second Sight have given The Devil’s Candy a beautiful release on limited edition 4K UHD & blu-ray, which you can preorder now and will be available from 25th May. There’s a fantastic commentary from Sean Byrne, interviews with Embry, Director of Photography Simon Chapman, Editor Andy Canny and Production Designer Tom Hammock. There’s also a vfx feature and two of Byrne’s short films, Advantage Satan and Work? The limited edition boxset also includes 6 art cards and a 120 page booklet of essays – one of my favourite things that Second Sight does with their releases. This is a 5 star movie, with a 5 star special release and I can’t recommend it more.
Thank you to Second Sight and Aim Publicity for sending me the release to review.
Sam Munster | Horror Hyperfixations 