Birds. Eggs. An unusual basis for a horror-thriller, but it can be done. Marek Turner joins us to discuss a double feature of avian dread starting with what is arguably ground zero for the animal attack horror sub-genre, The Birds (1963), directed by Alfred Hitchcock. We follow that up with bizarre Italian proto-giallo, Death Laid An Egg (1968), directed by Giulio Questi.

The Birds is a classic which probably isn't spoilable at this point, but we will be calling out Spoiler Territory for Death Laid An Egg. Skip ahead to 2:05:19 to avoid spoilers for that one.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Buy Marek Turner's new novel, The Reluctant Gardener!

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Nice Bird" by Custard

The sea was angry that day, my friends. And... a little bit rapey...

Nothing beats aquatic horror - we love movies where nasties from the depths spend 80-90 minutes wreaking havoc among shrieking B-movie actors, so we've lined up a fin-tastic double feature to scratch that itch. Bryce stops by to discuss Humanoids from the Deep (1980), directed by Barbara Peeters, and Killer Fish (1979), directed by Antonio Margheriti.

We don't think these films are really spoilable so we don't bother with Spoiler Territory this week!

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Here Come More Perils From the Sea" by Mark Kozelek and Jimmy LaValle

As devoted fans of Hollywood genre and crime cinema of the 60's and 70's, we have a high appreciation for the copious output of director John Frankenheimer. Our resident Frankenfanatic, Nick Langdon, joins us this week to discuss Frankenheimer's late-career return to form, Ronin (1998), along with French Connection 2 (1975) his largely forgotten and woefully underseen sequel to William Friedkin's masterpiece. From De Niro to Hackman, from high speed car chases to one ex-junkie wheezing his way through the mean streets of Marseille, this is a kinetic and sometimes gruelling excursion for Hollywood into Frankeheimer's adopted home of France. We find much to discuss about these action procedurals, one of which endures as a cult classic while the other is still perhaps waiting for its cult to emerge.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Ronin by skipping ahead to the 1:40:30 mark, and for French Connection 2 by skipping ahead to 2:42:02.

Join our Patreon! As a member of our Mario Adorf Allstars tier you get access to hours of extra content including two audiocommentaries every month and other bonus episodes! Find it here.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"French Disko" by Stereolab

What do you do when your horror franchise is running out of ideas? Well, you could send your horror villain into space. Or you could team him up with another famous horror villain for an old-fashioned monster mash. But of course, the Friday the 13th franchise would never resort to such desperate measures... would they? Al is back in the house this week as we check out Jason X (2001), directed by James Isaac, and Freddy vs Jason (2003), directed by Ronny Yu.

Let's just say, plot is not really the reason to watch either of these films. so we won't be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for either of them.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"these are not your dreams" by sleepmakeswaves

Actual rabid dogs would be much better behaved than these people. Sammy from the Gentlemen's Guide to Midnite Cinema comes over to our place with a sleazy movie under each arm, as is his wont. This week, we check out Rabid Dogs (1974), directed by Mario Bava and (not a sequel), Like Rabid Dogs (1976), directed by Mario Imperoli. These are two fever dreams of rampant criminality and amorality, of a kind only the Italians of the 1970's could purvey. Hold your nose, we're diving in.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Rabid Dogs by skipping ahead to the 1:45:09 mark, and for Like Rabid Dogs by skipping ahead to 2:39:03.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Dogs" by Motorhead

It's the end of the world as we know it and we feel... well, you can't complain, can you?Author and publisher AM Belsey joins us today to discuss a couple of films about the end of the world... or ARE they??? We check out Danny Boyle's Sunshine (2007), and follow it up with cult New Zealand curio, The Quiet Earth (1985), directed by Geoff Murphy. Sexy scientists, solar edging and a New Zealand with marginally less people than it usually has - this is a week for heady sci-fi concepts indeed.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Sunshine by skipping ahead to the 1:38:24 mark, and for The Quiet Earth by skipping ahead to 2:28:51.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Staring at the Sun" by TV On The Radio

We said James Bond would return... and he did! We continue our series checking out the lesser loved entries from the 007 franchise. This week, it's time to discuss George Lazenby's sole outing as the famous spy, On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), directed by Peter Hunt, and follow it up with one of the most maligned films in the series, Octopussy (1983), directed by John Glen. We discuss the many curious choices that were made surrounding the first non-Connery Bond film (including Lazenby's choice to throw it all away) and make a case for the very specific energy that Roger Moore brings to the role in what is undeniably a very silly Bond film.

Stick around for our Bond Tropewatch segment, where we rate each of these films against the checklist of standard Bond tropes to see which fares best!

Fair warning: we go into the plots of both films in some detail, including the endings, but we feel like James Bond is somewhat unspoilable in general, so we won't be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for either of these films.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"On Her Majesty's Secret Service" by The Propellerheads

Two very different genre exercises today: one an essential masterpiece of its idiom, the other a true exploitation cash-in of a much more polished and successful film. Rich Fox is with us to discuss Tenebrae (1982), directed by Dario Argento and Tentacles (1977), directed by Ovidio G. Assonitis. From the sublime to the ridiculous, perhaps, but both films are fascinating in their own way.

Tentacles is hard to spoil (especially if you've seen Jaws before), so no Spoiler Territory for that one. We do, however, call out Spoiler Territory for Tenebrae so if you want to skip ahead from that point, you can rejoin the conversation at the 1:52:31 mark to avoid spoilers.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Flashing" by Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli and Massimo Morante

Wings Hauser brings out the lunatic in us, so this week we have a suitably chaotic episode to cover a Wings double feature where the sleaze and violence are dialled right up - without skimping on the quality of film-making. Heather Drain and Ted Bennett join us this week to review Vice Squad (1982), directed by Gary Sherman and The Wind (1986), directed by Nico Mastorakis. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll almost certainly make that wincing face... and that's just from listening to our discussion.

Neither film is particularly spoilable, so we won't be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for either of them.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Jeanny" by Falco

Sakana drops in this week to discuss a couple of early films directed by American exploitation legend, Jack Hill. First up: Pit Stop (1969), a film marketed as a demolition derby thrill ride which nevertheless contains surprising character depth and drama. Then we follow it up with cult favourite, Spider Baby (1967) which, despite its weirdo horror comedy approach, has some emotional depth of its own.

We will be announcing a Spoiler Territory section for both films, so if you haven't seen them before you listen, you can nevertheless avoid spoilers for Pit Stop by skipping ahead to the 1:27:17 mark, and for Spider Baby by skipping ahead to 2:18:58.

Want to get in touch? You can reach us on [email protected]

Theme music: "The Cold Light of Day" by HKM. Check out HKM on #SoundCloud or Bandcamp

"Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me" by The Smiths