Collective Nightmares

By Collective Nightmares

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How many episodes does Collective Nightmares have?

The podcast currently has 203 episodes available.

Collective Nightmares episodes:

June 18, 2020 Knives and Skin (2019)
For this episode we held two discussions of the film. For the first we were joined by two students, Audrey and Andi. For the second we were joined by Keenan and Sophie. We first want to thank them for their time and thoughts. This film is unique. Knives and Skin is ambitious, beautiful, and laudable for the diversity of age, sexuality, ethnicity, as well as including numerous interesting and under-represented topics facing young women. However, for us the film never formed into a cohesive narrative where all of that fascinating content could be placed. Without a border to the puzzle, we were left feeling like we were either missing pieces or had pieces from more than one puzzle to fit together. And as a result we never were able to form a full picture from this otherwise fascinating film.
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1h 50min
April 15, 2020 It Comes At Night (2017)
It Comes at Night (Shults 2017)
Another credit to Laura’s ambition, for this episode we revisit It Comes at Night (Shults 2017). A film that was extraordinary the first time and is even more impactful given we are recording on the upslope of the COVID19 pandemic in the United States. This film tackles the core precepts of the social contract, stability, and trust. Sparing the errors of unnecessary effects and overwrought plot twists, this film zeroes in on characters and social pressure to great effect. We found this discussion somewhat cathartic in these anxious times and we hope you do as well.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE

TOPIC INDEX – It Comes At Night (Shults 2018) (times are approximate)
0:35 – Introductions
7:00 – Discussion begins
8:12 – The film’s questions and COVID19 context
12:00 – Key components of the film
13:36 – Maus
23:39 – The social contract
30:20 – Intentionality and the social contract
33:56 – A criticism of the film – family
47:00 – Use of ambiguity in the film
51:14 – Film ending and altruism
55:55 – Why spare Will in the beginning?
1:02:52 – Argument of the film
1:05:46 – Personal vs film ideology
1:08:30 – Guns and the social contract
1:13:10 – Generalizability of the film
1:17:50 – Coronavirus, guns, the social contract, and politics
1:27:30 – Film concision
1:30:23 – Contrasted with A Quiet Place and Eden Lake
1:35:27 – Grading the Film
1:39:31 – Applicability of the film to real life and comparison to The First Purge (McMurray 2018)
1:42:00 – Empathy and the role of Travis
1:49:30 – Sociology Moment: Disaster Panic Media Myths
Tierney, K., Bevc, C., & Kuligowski, E. 2006. “Metaphors Matter: Disaster Myths, Media Frames, and Their Consequences in Hurricane Katrina.” The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 604: 57-81. www.jstor.org/stable/25097781.
Recommendations for other films
Related Episodes
The First Purge (McMurray 2018)
Crawl (Aja 2019)
A Quiet Place (Krasinski 2018)
Credits
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks! paypal.me/collectivenightmares
Thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 52
The post It Comes At Night (2017) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
1h 59min
March 19, 2020 Hansel & Gretel (2007) and Gretel & Hansel (2020)
Hansel & Gretel (Yim 2007) and Gretel & Hansel (Perkins 2020)
A credit to Laura’s ambition, we view and discuss two films for this episode. Both are modern dark fairy tales, a fascinating sub-genre of horror. Despite these similarities, otherwise the films are not at all connected or related. The Yim film was ultimately the better film, by Perkins’ version had merit as well.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
A Tale of Two Sisters (Kim 2003)
Hansel & Gretel (Yim 2007)
Gretel & Hansel (Perkins 2020)
TOPIC INDEX – Hansel & Gretel (Yim 2007) and Gretel & Hansel (Perkins 2020) (times are approximate)
0:35 – Introductions
6:00 – Discussion begins
9:11 – Osgood Perkins
13:56 – Laura on theme of tension between altruism and selfishness
23:11 – Korean version characters recap
30:26 – Another script draft needed
32:05 – Intro sequence
32:55 – Random zombie hunter
34:09 – The Midsommar a new Collective Nightmares critical trope
35:21- A brief digression to discuss A Two of Two Sisters (Kim 2003)
41:32 – Hansel & Gretel (2007)
46:20 – Santa
50:57 – Eun-Soo backstory
58:00 – Symbolic adulthood in Gretel & Hansel and ecofeminism
1:02:37 – Bechdel Test
1:06:47 – Grading the film with the Collective Nightmares Evolving Rubric of Horror Film Social Responsibility
1:08:54 – Gretel & Hansel (Perkins 2020) overall
1:12:00 – Hansel & Gretel (Yim 2007) overall
1:24:28 – Christianity in South Korea
Recommendations for other films
The Blackcoat’s Daughter (Perkins 2015)
I Saw the Devil (Jee-won 2010)
Related Episodes
Midsommar (Aster 2019)
Ghostland (Laugier 2018)
Credits
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks! paypal.me/collectivenightmares
Thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 51
The post Hansel & Gretel (2007) and Gretel & Hansel (2020) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
1h 30min
February 28, 2020 Rabid (2019)
Rabid (Soska Sisters 2019)
Rabid marks the newest feature from the cult favorite Soska Sisters. (If you haven’t watched their other films, Dead Hooker in a Trunk (2009), and, American Mary (2012), you totally should!)
The Twisted Twins share both Canadian heritage, and body horror genre heritage, with David Cronenberg, who directed the original Rabid in 1977. They finely balance updating this classic, giving it modern style and relevance while keeping overtly feminist questions and themes, gruesome scenes, and naughty dreams. Along with Black Christmas this is a hugely under-rated horror film of 2019!
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – Rabid (Soska Sisters 2019) (times are approximate)
0:35 – Introductions
2:44 – Discussion begins
5:11 – Comparisons to the original Rabid by Cronenberg (1977).
10:45 – Digging into the film
19:09 – Shooting Santa
21:46 – Freud, gender, and sexual symbolism
27:14 – Gender dynamics
30:06 – Her disfigurement and her voice
31:34 – Silencing her and the role of fashion
33:43 – External presence vs internal self
37:00 – Back to gender
39:22 – Why is it infectious?
42:01 – Sociology Moment
45:40 – Schadenfraude
57:01 – Soska Sisters’ former films
1:00:00 – Developing a phallus
1:02:22 – Social construction of femininity within the film
1:19:33 – Grading the film
1:23:51 – Sociology Moment
Recommendations for other films
Rabid (Cronenberg 1977)
Black Christmas (Takal 2019)
American Mary (Soska Sisters 2012)
Dead Hooker in a Trunk (Soska Sisters 2009)
Related Episodes
Black Christmas (Takal 2019)
In My Skin (de Van 2002)
The Perfection (Shepard 2018)
Credits
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks! paypal.me/collectivenightmares
Thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 50
The post Rabid (2019) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
1h 36min
January 17, 2020 Black Christmas (2019)
Black Christmas (Takal 2019)
Black Christmas is Marshall’s favorite horror film of 2019! It is directly comparable to Get Out in terms of outstanding craft and concept. Sadly it received a limited release. Takal both wrote and directed the film. We will be returning to her earlier film Always Shine soon because this was so impressive. Takal managed to wrap a slasher film around feminist political history without being preachy or clunky. Watch this film!
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – Black Christmas (Takal 2019) (times are approximate)
0:35 – Introductions
2:44 – Discussion begins
5:11 – Comparisons to the original film by Clarke (1974).
9:59 – Laura weighs in
12:47 – Sandwich mayonnaise
13:31 – SUPER disappointed in IMDb! Pop-up ad when trying to reference something for the episode. I’ve been using IMDb for more than 20 years. They have declined so far from their original data-oriented goal.
16:41 – A movie with a clear argument, in comparison to our Peeping Tom experience (Powell 1960)
17:18 – Review of characters
19:12 – Car ride scene
20:15 – Going supernatural and our only substantive critique of the film
22:10 – Laying out the argument of the film for clarity
29:33 – Toxic (hegemonic) masculinity as toxic sludge
32:30 – Representation of men
38:08 – Migraines
41:29 – A Christmas song for the ages
43:31 – Exemplary creation of a cinematic symbol through the use of costume
44:50 – Navigating the technology
46:05 – Laura’s expectations for the film and why even aggregated reviews can be problematic especially for horror films
50:14 – Grading the film with the Collective Nightmares Evolving Rubric of Horror Film Social Responsiblity
Recommendations for other films
Black Christmas (Clark 1974)
Assassination Nation (Levinson 2018)
Related Episodes
Get Out (Peele 2017)
Assassination Nation (Levinson 2018)
Credits
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks! paypal.me/collectivenightmares
Thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 50
The post Black Christmas (2019) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
57min
January 03, 2020 Doctor Sleep (2019)
Doctor Sleep (Flanagan 2019)
Doctor Sleep is well shot and well paced, as we expect from Mike Flanagan. However, he cannot save a fatally flawed concept. This sequel to The Shining is unnecessary and it shows. While there is progress in terms of gender, age, and racial diversity, the film unfortunately also demonizes the poor and valorizes the upper-middle class.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – Doctor Sleep (Flanagan 2019) (times are approximate)
0:00 – Introductions
2:48 – Marshall confessions to the greatest of sins
3:47 – Laura opens with “hated it”; Marshall did not hate it
7:59 – Doctor Sleep compared to Crawl
19:45 – Marshall hates the name, Laura really hates The Hat
22:10 – An unnecessary film
29:32 – Sociology moment: visibility of consumption
31:55 – Religion and knowledge
36:20 – Secular vs religious
40:55 – The Shining references and Ready Player One
43:41- Laura brings it full circle with consumerism and bankruptcy of cinematic merit
44:29 – Marshall’s infamous First Purge AMC Theatres rant
Recommendations for other films
The Shining
Related Episodes
Crawl
The First Purge
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks!
Thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 49
The post Doctor Sleep (2019) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
54min
November 29, 2019 3 From Hell (2019)
3 From Hell (Zombie 2019)
Zombie is back again, as zombies tend to do. Unfortunately, this Zombie (film) is a slow, tired, rehash rather than anything new or interesting. Zombie still has a strong sense of style, but there is little else here to keep interest other than the viewer’s nostalgia for the first two films. This third film unnecessarily makes this a trilogy that would have been better remaining as a duology. If you like Zombie’s work, especially these characters, you’d do better to rewatch one of the earlier films.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – 3 From Hell (Zombie 2019) (times are approximate)
0:00 – Introductions
4:12 – Film discussion begins with Laura’s reactions
6:16 – Marshall’s thoughts on Rob Zombie’s oeuvre
16:00 – Plot problems and Laura’s appreciation
21:27 – Is this a horror movie?
24:22 – Characters and dialogue
29:00 – Is this film not socially irresponsible?
30:45 – Compared to The Human Centipede?
31:15 – Tension (lack thereof)
34:40 – Characters
38:40 – Sid Haig
Recommendations for other films
Last House on the Left (Craven 1972)
House of 1000 Corpses (Zombie 2003)
The Devil’s Rejects (Zombie 2005)
Halloween (Zombie 2007)
Related Episodes
The Human Centipede: First Sequence (Six 2009)
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks!
As always, thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 48
The post 3 From Hell (2019) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
46min
November 08, 2019 Crawl (2019)
Crawl (Aja 2019)
Lurking under our radar were creature features! We’ve risen to the occasion and dug into Alexandre Aja’s Crawl. While it does not have much social commentary, Crawl is an entertaining, well-made, jaunt with solid suspense and even a few jump scares. It features a very capable woman protagonist and some decent gore as well. It is what it is. If you enjoy films like Lake Placid, Anaconda, and Alligator this is another one definitely worth biting into.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – Crawl (Aja 2019) (times are approximate)
0:00 – Introductions
4:12 – Film discussion begins
6:09 – Soundtrack and sound design
8:16 – Lack of an idyllic component for contrast
8:47 – Creature features vs supernatural threats
14:21 – The nuclear family commentary as compared to slasher films
19:05 – Creature reveal and making the film
24:21 – Absence of a contrasting idyllic
25:02 – Creature films vs slasher films
27:26 – Character arc as motivation
31:07 – The importance of good in horror films
33:35 – Conflicting ideology in the film
38:14 – Suspense and tension
40:49 – The eye of the storm
49:53 – Acting quality
Recommendations for other films
Alligator (Teague 1980)
Lake Placid (Miner 1999)
Anaconda (Llosa 1997)
Related Episodes
Bird Box (Bier 2018)
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks!
As always, thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 47
The post Crawl (2019) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
1h 4min
October 28, 2019 Midsommar (2019)
Midsommar (Aster 2019)
A film with incredibly well written dialogue, superb acting, gorgeous cinematography. With these impressive external pieces and a pretense of depth, altogether the film remains superficial spectacle. For Marshall this was a glass half empty; disappointment because there was so much under-utilized potential. For Laura this was a glass half full; appreciation of the bones that were enough for her to flesh out a larger message from the film.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – Midsommar (Aster 2019) (times are approximate)
0:00 – Introductions
1:56 – Midsommar
3:14 – A brief pre-discussion rant from Marshall about the trailers for Ready or Not (Betinelli-Olpin and Gillett 2019) and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Tarantino 2019)
5:31 – Review of character names
6:28 – Discussion begins, spoilers after this point
7:26 – Into the weeds we go with cultural relativism
13:58 – Character dynamics and interaction
16:56 – Cultural relativism
18:17 – Marshall rips into the film
25:15 – Laura rebutts
28:23 – Sociology moment: Digging in on cultural relativism
29:28 – Is the cultural relativism in the text?
34:40 – Cannibal Holocaust (Deodatto 1980)
41:10 – The Human Centipede (Six 2009) question: How can you critique an exploitative experience if you are subjecting people to a representation of that experience?
42:43 – Back to Midsommar as compared to The Witch (Eggers 2015) SPOILERS
47:00 – Annnd Marshall slips into full rant mode on how to improve the film
51:48 – Othering and xenophobia
57:20 – Dani and Christian
1:07:40 – Why didn’t we hate this film or find it to be pretentious?
Recommendations for other films
Shrooms (Breathnach 2007)
The Witch (Eggers 2015)
Related Episodes
Cannibal Holocaust (Deodatto 1980)
The Human Centipede (Six 2009)

Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks!
As always, thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 46
The post Midsommar (2019) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
1h 22min
September 28, 2019 Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
Cannibal Holocaust (Deodata 1980)
This episode we found a copy of the uncensored, undedited version of the classic Cannibal Holocaust. With a reputation for gore and publicity, this film sparked an intensely intellectual discussion of representation, ethics, realism, and meta-commentary in films.
SPOILERS IN THIS EPISODE
TOPIC INDEX – Cannibal Holocaust (Deodato 1980) (times are approximate)
0:00 – Introductions
2:30 – Related episodes for context:
I Spit on Your Grave (Zarchi 1978)
I Spit on Your Grave (Monroe 2010)
The Human Centipede 2: Full Sequence (Six 2011)
3:27 – Spoilers
4:20 – Film discussion begins
8:16 – Laura’s meta-meta critique of a meta film
11:26 – Comparison to Midsommar (Aster 2019)
How can you address and represent an exploitative or explore a problematic topic
How can you comment on what you are representing when you are representing it?
18:46 – Justifying killing animals on screen
22:24 – Could a film be made that would accomplish this?
23:48 – Depictions of sexual assault
33:44 – Comparisons to The Human Centipede 2: Full Sequence (Six 2011)
35:20 – The Collective Nightmares ratio
36:05 – Meta-film commentary on itself
42:51 – Comparison to Midsommar
50:23 – Laura grades the film
56:26 – Marshall argues for additional points
56:37 – Sociology moment – film structure and ethnocentrism
1:02:12 – Animals, actors, and ethics, oh my!
1:08:31 – Killing geese in Denver City Park
1:09:00 – The ethics of film production
Related Episodes
This was another film that involved rape-revenge. We have done a series of episodes about this sub-genre. Other episodes include:
Midsommar (Aster 2019) (Coming soon!)
I Spit on Your Grave (Zarchi 1978)
I Spit on Your Grave (Monroe 2010)
The Human Centipede 2: Full Sequence (Six 2011)
Edited and processed with Audacity. Free, cross-platform, open source, and awesome.
https://www.audacityteam.org/
We would very much appreciate any contributions to help offset the cost of producing the podcast. Thanks!
As always, thanks for listening. Please let us know your thoughts.
• www.collectivenightmares.com
• IG: @collectivenightmares
• T: @collectnight
• [email protected]
• [email protected]
“Horror films are our collective nightmares.”
Episode 45
The post Cannibal Holocaust (1980) appeared first on Collective Nightmares.
...more
1h 35min

FAQs about Collective Nightmares:

How many episodes does Collective Nightmares have?

The podcast currently has 203 episodes available.

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