CALVAIRE (aka THE ORDEAL) (2004) d. Fabrice du Welz (Belgium) After his car breaks down en route to the next holiday gig, low-rent crooner Marc Stevens (Laurent Lucas) stumbles into a backwards backwoods community devoid of women. Taking shelter at a nearby inn, he soon finds himself captive in a nightmarish scenario that manages to surprise and unnerve without resorting to eviscerations. This genre offering from Belgium, which arrived on the cusp of the new "French Extreme" movement of the early 2000s, presents a few novel twists on the well-worn “travelers off the beaten path” trope. Kudos to director Fabrice du Welz, who co-wrote the script with Romain Protait, for his skillful evocation of dread-filled atmospherics, as well as one of the strangest dance sequences ever to pass through a camera lens. Also featuring Jackie Berroyer, Eurobabe Brigette Lahaie, and Phillipe Nahon (High Tension). Join AC and his marvelous panel of guests (Dominic Conti, John McDevitt, Cati Glidewell, Ashley Lamers) as they reflect back on 20 years of holiday counterprogramming with Calvaire!! ----------------------------------------- DOMINIC CONTI is a Chicago-based writer and actor. His first novel, Your Book Club, is now available. (Orders can be placed at [email protected], or you can just say hi.) CATI GLIDEWELL (aka The Blonde in Front) is a Chicago-based film critic, lifelong cinephile, film festival jury member, and a member of Chicago Indie Critics since 2020. You can find her on all social media platforms, as well as Post Mortem radio and Radio of Horror on YouTube. ASHLEY LAMERS is a professional counselor, animal advocate, coffee enthusiast, straight edge vegan feminist, and horror lover with a “do no harm, take no shit” sensibility. She has two cats, a business, and many opinions.  JOHN MCDEVITT is a lifelong cinephile who programs two recurring film events in Chicago: SUPER-HORROR-RAMA!, a weekly horror gathering with film screenings at Sideshow Gelato, and Fetish Film Forum, a monthly screening series about fetish, kink, leather, and BDSM at the Leather Archives & Museum. John is fascinated by all genres of cinema and appreciates horror most of all for its willingness to explore what makes us uncomfortable and for the compassion it often extends to its characters and the viewer. -------------------------------------------------- Keep Searching, Keep Exploring, and, most of all, Keep Sharing the Scare!!