Dark Discussions Podcast

Welcome to A Discovery of Witches, Demons, and Vampires Podcast – A weekly discussion of the Sky One, Now TV, Shudder, and Sundance television series A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES based on the ALL SOULS trilogy of novels by Deborah Harkness.  Starring Teresa Palmer and Matthew Goode.

Series synopsis:

Diana Bishop, historian and witch, accesses the old tome Ashmole 782 and knows she must solve its mysteries. She is offered help by the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, but he’s a vampire and witches should never trust vampires.

Nubile young co-eds; a crazy man with a knife, machete, or axe; young people stuck in a location they can’t get out from. That’s the generic slasher film. Starting with old giallos from Europe to the hey day of the 1980’s, slashers have been a staple within the horror movie fanbase. With a few interesting slasher from 2021 including INITIATION, the subgenre has made somewhat of a comeback. The latest, STUDENT BODY, just came out on February 8th, 2022 wherever one can stream films.

Jane (Montse Hernandez) is a brilliant student that doesn’t apply herself. Most of her clique in high school lead by Merritt (Cheyenne Haynes) are drifting through school. Her teacher, Mr. Aunspach (Christian Camargo), sees something in Janet. When he tries to get her to forget those that are “holding her back,” she feels cornered. Soon a chain reaction causes people to get fired, lives are ruined, and a sledgehammer maniac comes after Janet and her friends.

The film also stars Harley Quinn Smith, Austin Zajur, and Anthony Keyvan. In a duel role, the movie is directed and written by Lee Ann Kurr. With little press behind the movie, and reviews found only through internet searches, Halloween Boutique Psychotronic Reviews takes a look at the production and gives their thoughts on the film.

Stage productions, especially musicals, have been turned into very successful movies.  CHICAGO (2002) is a perfect example of that.  Well, one such production was a wink-and-a-nod to horror and science fiction of yesteryear and was turned into a movie in 1975.  That film, ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW, unfortunately was received all not that well during its immediate release.  But a 20th Century Fox executive had the idea to turn it into a midnight movie.  And from there, it became an instant hit and now is considered a classic film.

One night when a young couple, Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon), get lost in a thunder storm, they head to a remote castle for help.  Invited in by Riff Raff (Richard O’Brien), they meet the castle’s owner, Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry).  Unfortunately for Brad and Janet, the “good” doctor may have plans for the young couple which includes more than simply using the telephone. 

The musical stage show was written by co-star Richard O’Brien and brought to the screen by him along with director Jim Sharman.  The film’s cast included many from the original stage show including Tim Curry in the iconic role of Dr. Frank-N-Furter.  With the film’s fan interaction during midnight screenings, the movie has become a cult classic and is considered an important film by the National Film Registry and the Library of Congress.  Dark Discussions takes a look at this Patreon pick by listener Holly and gives their thoughts about the film and its significance.

Welcome to Jason Unleashed Episode #01. Hororrphilia Jason's Top 30 Horror Films of 2022. I countdown my top 30 favorite horror films of last year, plus honorable mentions, hidden gems, my thoughts on the year as a whole, and more! Download, or stream and enjoy! Thanks for listening and join my Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/266761753481290

Show Notes

Night House Ending Explained: https://screenrant.com/night-house-ending-explained/

Broadcast Signal Intrusion Ending Explained: https://tinyurl.com/muxcerv4

Welcome to A Discovery of Witches, Demons, and Vampires Podcast – A weekly discussion of the Sky One, Now TV, Shudder, and Sundance television series A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES based on the ALL SOULS trilogy of novels by Deborah Harkness.  Starring Teresa Palmer and Matthew Goode.

Series synopsis:

Diana Bishop, historian and witch, accesses the old tome Ashmole 782 and knows she must solve its mysteries. She is offered help by the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, but he’s a vampire and witches should never trust vampires.

We are already 1/12th into 2022 and some good films have come out. Yet did last year start out with a bang or a whimper? Dark Discussions puts together their review of all that was good and bad in 2021. Included is the consideration of dozens of different films that were worthy enough to be considered as a top 10 film for genre and horror films.

Each of your co-hosts put together a list of movies they thought were good enough to be seen by audiences. This included both a list of horror films and a list of other speculative fiction films. Afterwards we then combined those lists and came up with Dark Discussions definitive lists of the best of 2021. Some obvious films like A QUIET PLACE 2 and MALIGNANT appear but also little known films like TILL DEATH, KNOW FEAR, and THE VIGIL were considered.

Also included are some of our listener choices and what they felt were the best of the year. And don’t forget our top and worst scenes, scream queens, breakout star, and anything else you can think of. Dark Discussions wraps up last year in a nice tight bow and gives their listeners a good many films to go out and search for.

Welcome to A Discovery of Witches, Demons, and Vampires Podcast – A weekly discussion of the Sky One, Now TV, Shudder, and Sundance television series A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES based on the ALL SOULS trilogy of novels by Deborah Harkness.  Starring Teresa Palmer and Matthew Goode.

Series synopsis:

Diana Bishop, historian and witch, accesses the old tome Ashmole 782 and knows she must solve its mysteries. She is offered help by the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, but he’s a vampire and witches should never trust vampires.

Independent cinema (or low budget film if you prefer) can surprise movie goers whenever they take a chance to view the film.  With its small cast and limited set pieces, such a film has to have a great script, fine cinematography, and a great cast.  Late in 2021, the film VAL, with its very appealing poster art and interesting trailer, may not have gotten the buzz it had hoped, but as an example of a “small film,” it was most certainly one to take a look at.

Fin (Zachary Mooren) is running from the police after a crime that occurred earlier in the morning.  When he escapes into the home of Val (Misha Reeves), he discovers that she’s a high priced escort that may have enough money for him to escape his pursuers.  Recovering from a wound, Fin ascertains that Val may not be a damsel-in-distress, but instead someone that is willing to toy with him for reasons he’d soon find out.

VAL is a late 2021 release directed by Aaron Fradkin.  The director co-wrote the script with Victoria Fratz.  The movie stars with strong performances from both Misha Reeves and Zachary Mooren.  With its fine script, interesting color and set pieces, and fine filmmaking all around, Dark Discussions Podcast decided to take a look at this little seen film and give their thoughts.

Welcome to A Discovery of Witches, Demons, and Vampires Podcast – A weekly discussion of the Sky One, Now TV, Shudder, and Sundance television series A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES based on the ALL SOULS trilogy of novels by Deborah Harkness.  Starring Teresa Palmer and Matthew Goode.

Series synopsis:

Diana Bishop, historian and witch, accesses the old tome Ashmole 782 and knows she must solve its mysteries. She is offered help by the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, but he’s a vampire and witches should never trust vampires.

Welcome to A Discovery of Witches, Demons, and Vampires Podcast – A weekly discussion of the Sky One, Now TV, Shudder, and Sundance television series A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES based on the ALL SOULS trilogy of novels by Deborah Harkness.  Starring Teresa Palmer and Matthew Goode.

Series synopsis:

Diana Bishop, historian and witch, accesses the old tome Ashmole 782 and knows she must solve its mysteries. She is offered help by the enigmatic Matthew Clairmont, but he’s a vampire and witches should never trust vampires.