Dark Discussions Podcast

When DELIVERANCE appeared in theaters at the end of July in 1972, the buzz around it was most certainly contagious. Two years prior, the book that the film had been based on had been a best seller. Not much later, the source material itself would be considered one of the greatest novels of the 20th century. But the movie, itself, became something of note. It too would land up on awards lists.

Ed (Jon Voight) is convinced by his friend Lewis (Burt Reynolds) to help set up a canoe trip down the Cahulawassee River. To fill up the trip, Ed recruits his other friends Bobby (Ned Beatty) and Drew (Ronny Cox) to come along. With the Cahulawassee River valley soon to be flooded by the construction of a dam, this will be their last opportunity. Unfortunately while stopping on the river’s edge for lunch, a horrible circumstance transpires, changing all their lives forever.

Today DELIVERANCE is considered one of the greatest films of all time. John Boorman, though not necessarily prolific, showed why he was one of the era’s best directors. James Dickey, the author of the novel, wrote the adaptation of the film himself. Leading the cast, Jon Voight was only three years removed from his Oscar performance in MIDNIGHT COWBOY. DELIVERANCE also stars Burt Reynolds. Dark Discussions gives tribute to him and his recent passing.

Welcome the newest episode of Dark Discussions, your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that’s fantastic.

There have been a lot of really good low budget or independent horror films over the last few years. The Dark Discussions Podcast seems to review many, most being arthouse or foreign. But for every arthouse horror film, there are a bunch of zombie, monster, or slasher films that appear on VOD as well. One of them, the Christmas themed slasher All Through the House, has rose to the surface with a very well made trailer and a fantastic marketing campaign. If you want to get the word out about a film, these folks know how.

Years ago, a quiet neighborhood is struck with the disappearance of Jamie Garrett, a five year old little girl. Fifteen years later, next door neighbor Rachel, comes home from college for the holidays, reconnecting with her friends, an ex-boyfriend, and the mother of the missing girl. As she and her two friends help bring down Christmas ornaments from Mrs. Garrett's attic, a masked killer dressed as Santa Claus begins to hunt down college coeds leaving a trail of dead bodies.

Released to festivals in 2015, All Through the House made its debut in quarter four of 2016, perfect timing for a Christmas horror themed movie. The film is written and directed by newcomer Todd Nunes and stars a bevy of bountiful beauties including lead actress Ashley Mary Nunes (sister to the director). Dark Discussions takes a look at this new slasher film and give their thoughts on whether it is a worthy throwback to the 1980's or not.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

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Welcome the newest episode of Dark Discussions, your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that’s fantastic.

Demon possession, witches, ghosts, or what could be a biological infection that turns people into mindless zombies. That's what you may ... or may not get from the new South Korean horror film, The Wailing. The movie was written and directed by the genre favorite Hong-jin Na, who's serial killer film, The Chaser, received rave reviews and attracted an international audience. However, The Wailing seems to even top that where it has received a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes from English language reviewers.

In the small, rural, mountain community of Goksung, a wandering foreigner of Japanese decent arrives and sets up home out in the woods. Soon villagers begin to go insane, come down with a grotesque rash, and begin to murder people including their own family members. Local constable, officer Jong-goo, probes the deaths and soon his investigation leads back to a woman dressed in white. What appears to be random crimes, soon begins to follow a bizarre pattern.

The Wailing could be called an art house horror film. With its long running time (almost three hours), its slow pace, and its peculiar mystery, the film would not seem to be for the typical horror fan. Yet being well made and delivering chills at the right moment, the movie has won over many folks besides the critics. Dark Discussions takes a look at this new Korean horror film and gives their opinion.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

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Welcome the newest episode of Dark Discussions, your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that’s fantastic.

A definition of a phenomena. Well, Psycho, the 1960 film by Alfred Hitchcock would qualify. Based on the novel by H.P. Lovecraft's friend, Robert Bloch, the book was brought to the attention of the famous director. Eventually Joseph Stefano, known soon as a producer/writer for the Outer Limits, was hired to write the film adaption. Soon stars such as Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh were cast. And unlike Hitchcock's recent films of the time, Psycho was a low budget affair, using a television crew for filming.

The story is about a young woman named Marion Crane who is in a passionate affair with a small business owner. Unable to pay his bills, she steals $40,000 from her employer and is off and running to bring him the money. When a rainstorm causes her to spend the night at a small motel, the proprietor of the establishment, Norman Bates, has small talk with her which gives her the strength to correct her mistakes to head back to her home and return the money. While staying the night at the motel, things change unexpectedly which results in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.

Dark Discussions has hit another milestone. Their 250th episode! As has happened in the past, we have critiqued a great genre classic every 50th episode, deciding upon the amazing spectacle known as Psycho this time. With its mystique as the first slasher film, and most certainly one of the best films in movie history (no matter the genre), Alfred Hitchcock's amazing piece of celluloid gives your co-hosts a fine topic for such an important highlight.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

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Welcome the newest episode of Dark Discussions, your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that’s fantastic.

Back in November of 2015, co-host Philip discovered a new video-on-demand science fiction film entitled Circle had been released. After recommending it to co-host Eric, the two convinced the crew to do an episode on this little film that had to say about society, social structure, and the human psyche in, if not an original way, a very unique way. A group of strangers find themselves locked away in a dark room with each standing on a orange-red circle upon the floor. Get off, you die. But more horrific, every two minutes you have to vote a person to die; if you don't, someone randomly dies a horrifying death. The film asks, what would you do?

With episode 209 of Dark Discussions released, actor Dan Lench, playing the oddly titled character Rich Man, heard the episode and not only gave feedback but twittered the link to the show to his followers. Soon, his agent, Lisa Berman, did the same. Dark Discussions reached out to Dan and asked him to appear on the show so we could not only learn about him, but for him to give us his comments about the film as well as give us more details on its production.

Things learned include behind the scenes facts such has how the soundstage was made, that its location was in the same building as a Chinese laundry, an actor on the final day (having been on the Broadway stage production of the Lion King) sang a magical song, how parts were cast, and where Dan himself almost lost his role to the biggest star of the film! Get ready for a unique episode of the podcast and meet the great, funny, and talented Mr. Dan Lench.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

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Welcome the newest episode of Dark Discussions, your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that’s fantastic.

The future. Many authors and film makers have presented their outlook on where humanity will be in some far away year. In many cases, such as with Arthur C. Clarke and Jack Williamson, it can be wonderful, mystical, and amazing. In other cases, such as with Robert Heinlein and William Gibson, it is dystopian or unjust. But what sticks out is that the stories are strictly human and aliens (if they even exist) are only plot devices.

In comes Neill Blomkamp with his 2009 film, District 9, which uses aliens as an allegory against bigotry. The film was a spectacular success. Hollywood takes note and his latest film, Elysium, starring top talent Jodie Foster and Matt Damon, brings us the year 2154, where earth is ruined from war, disease, and pollution. The wealthy elite now live upon a giant space station that circles Earth. This "world" includes beautiful fields, fabulous houses, and healthcare. On Earth, however, the poor suffer. Humanity it seems hasn't changed all that much.

This latest science fiction film with its spectacular effects and world creation has created a media buzz usually not particular to film. With its political messages and its controversial subject matter, folks have been divided on what to think. One thing, though, is that all three co-hosts of Dark Discussions have seen it and they give their opinion on what to make of it all.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

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Welcome to Dark Discussions podcast. Your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that's fantastic.

Dark Discussions Podcast Network introduces Antidote for the Commonplace Podcast.

We are back from GenCon 2013 to recap the best four days in gaming. The hosts recap the con and all the cool games we played including deckbuilding games, boardgames, and card games. We also provide mini-reviews of Zombicide and X-Wing and discuss Matt’s Star Wars LCG North American Championship victory.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

WWW.DARKDISCUSSIONS.COM

Welcome to Dark Discussions podcast. Your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that's fantastic.

Dark Discussions Podcast Network introduces Antidote for the Commonplace Podcast.

Co-hosts Matt and Jon discuss Guillermo Del Toro’s latest summer action epic, Pacific Rim. It’s all out action with giant mechs vs giant monsters, but how does the film hold up outside of the battles? We take a critical eye to one of our favorite directors after discussing his work in our previous episode.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

WWW.DARKDISCUSSIONS.COM

Welcome to Dark Discussions podcast. Your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that's fantastic.

Dark Discussions Podcast Network introduces Antidote for the Commonplace Podcast.

Sunday brought season 3 and the fight with the Governor to a close. Or did it? Tune in as we discuss the season 3 finale, what the future holds for fans of the hit show and turn back to the comic series that started it all.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

WWW.DARKDISCUSSIONS.COM

Welcome the newest episode of Dark Discussions, your place for the discussion of horror film, fiction, and all that’s fantastic.

The greys or grays are one of the least tapped sources for scares in genre fiction. While vampires and zombies seem to dominate every type of media that exists, the greys, those skinless white aliens known for human abduction, seem to be continuously forgotten. One wonders why since the mythos behind them are vague and easily molded for original stories. Some authors and films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind and the novels and books of Whitley Strieber have caught the imagination. But the beginning may be the James Earl Jones television movie from the 1970's, The UFO Incident, based on the Betty and Barney Hill abductions.

Director and screenwriter Scott Stewart's new film, Dark Skies, may just be the first of a new wave of horror films based on the greys. With a strongly developed cast of characters and a sinister presence seeming to hover over the starring family like a cloud, Stewart expands the story from curiously strange occurrences to a fight for our characters very existence.

Dark Discussions talks about one of 2013's early horror films. Though it had a quiet release, the film is a nice addition to a tragically underused monster. Could this be just the beginning of a new wave of monster to replace or stand hand in hand with zombies and vampires? Either way, the film is refreshing and brings out the creeps of co-host Philip's favorite horror monster.

As always we welcome your comments: [email protected] (written email or attached mp3 files)

WWW.DARKDISCUSSIONS.COM