Mike and Ariel actually got to meet in person at this past weekend's Telluride Horror Show, and to celebrate we snagged some coffee and breakfast burritos while taking in the mountain air and discussed what we loved at the festival. We keep it spoiler free while discussing Suitable Flesh, Hell House LLC 4 Origins: The Carmichael Manor; Sleep; I Will Never Leave You Alone, You'll Never Find Me, Late Night With the Devil, Vincent Must Die, Frogman, and more. We also pause the show to admire a very cool looking bird.

After a seven year hiatus Jigsaw made a return to theaters with, um, "Jigsaw." This week Mike, Ari, and Nichole discuss whether the Spierig's attempt at going back to basics and eschewing the more over the top gore and torture elements of the franchise worked in drawing new and returning fans back to the series. We also discuss the nature of John's early game, whether these traps were simpler and more winnable, and if John being in an early stage of his cancer made this so. We talk about the series introducing yet another disciple, where horror was at in the by this point in the decade and whether Saw was still relevant. It's a big episode as always, hope you enjoy.

This week we are back with a not so final chapter of Saw 3D. We are here to find out how the story of John Kramer, Amanda, and John's large adult son Detective Hoffman wraps up once and for all. We enter the 3rd Dimension to do so and we get even more of cops being stupid the movie, more gore, and the first public display of Jigsaw's talents with one of the most ludicrous and over the top traps the franchise has ever gifted us. We also discuss the Intriguing premise of John punishing someone for lying about being in one of his traps while lamenting with the fact that this great idea wasn't presented all that well. all this in so much more with perhaps the most over the top in goofiest entry of the franchise to date with special guest Sarah Stubbs from Final Girls Feast and Geeks Who Eat.

 

Minor spoilers for SAW X between 1:40:30 & 1:43:39 where Mike asks a question that literally breaks Ari’s brain in real time. 

Check out Ariel’s article “The Hypocrisy of Jigsaw” here

This week our SAW VI episode talks about the turn towards social issues, and how this could be subtitled “Occupy Jigsaw” as predatory lenders and insurance companies get put to the test. The discussion gets emotional as we share our own personal experiences within the hellscape that is the American healthcare system. We also talk about the ways that Hoffman is like 1980s Ric Flair, dive into the sibling rivalry between Amanda and Hoffman as they vie for the position of John's favorite acolyte, and things get awkward when Mike talks about which cohosts he would save and which would not make the cut if we were all placed in the carousel shotgun trap. We talk franchise fatigue and how even the most ardent fans may have found themselves distracted by the shiny newness of the first Paranormal Activity film in the fall of 2009. Mike, Ari, DeVaughn, and Stephen are joined by longtime listener Lucy for one of our this can’t miss episode.

In this clip from our latest patreon exclusive episode, Mike and Rachel talk the origins of the Charles Bronson classic Hollywood exploitation film Death Wish. To unlock this nearly two hour episode along with dozens of more hours of content, go to patreon.com/podandthependulum and become a supporter today.

After the dramatic reveal at the end of SAW IV, it’s now Detective Hoffman’s world and we’re just living in it. Mike, Ari, Nichole and DeVaughn are joined again by Kat Hughes of Ghouls Magazine to talk abut the midpoint in the SAW franchise. The fifth entry is typically where things go off the rails (Roy the ambulance driver, the Man in Black, demon baby Freddy) for franchises, will SAW V fall into the same “trap”? We’re taking about how Hoffman runs a game as opposed to Jigsaw, and the wary relationship between the two frenemies. Plus, we commend the series for leaning into its thesis statement: “all law enforcement officials are idiots” as evidenced by Agent Strahm’s baffling decisions and exterior monologue we get to enjoy through the movie. We talk about the fantastic traps, the not-so-great retconning that’s going on, and we stan for Jill Tuck. All this and more, this week with SAW V.

Mike, Ari, Rachel & Nichole are joined by Alison (Who's There? A Podcast About Horror Fans) for our fourth trip to Saw City (three more punches of our frequent travel card and I think we get a medium sized grape flavored Slurpee). This time we talk about the definitive death of Jigsaw and whether the flashback structure benefits the experience or just gives Tobin Bell a nice payday. We talk about the mystery box nature of this entry as it bridges the first trio of films with a follow-up trilogy. Spoiler warning: we talk the dual twists that close the film: Hoffman's reveal and the fact that this takes place alongside the previous entry. Plus, we speculate: what if the traps in Saw X are thirst traps, and what if Paddington 3 finds the titular bear eating racist children? 

 

All this and more!

This week we cover the controversial SAW 3, and friends, this episode goes to some places. From Jigsaw slash fiction to what Mr. Rogers and Mr. Kramer have in common, we promise you there isn't another show that covers this movie like we do. 

Mike, Nichole, DeVaughn, & Ari are joined by longtime listener and patron Lucy to talk about the above, plus, what we think about this round of traps, whether the creative team would come to regret definitively killing off their villains, and the parent / child relationship at the heart of the movie. This, and so much more.

We're back to play another game. This week Mike, Devaughn and Ariel are joined by Kat Hughes (Ghouls Magazine) to talk about the return of Billy the Puppet. Coming just one year after the surprising success of SAW, its sequel up the traps, ups the carnage, ups the victims, ups the gore, and ups what we learn about ya boi Jigsaw. All these are good things! Unfortunately it also ups the Wahlberg, giving us a former New Kid on the Block in the "corrupt cop/pissed off divorced dad" in its central role. We were hangin' tough though, and delivered a hell of an episode.

This week we kick off a new franchise and dig into one of the most divisive yet successful series of the past 20 years. We kick off our SAW coverage with James Wan and Leigh Whanell’s debut effort and we discuss the merits of this movie and  why it gets harshly judged on what it wrought in the aftermath of its success. We talk about the struggle it took to bring this low budget thriller to the big screen, and how it almost wound u on the dustbin of the direct to DVD pipeline before being rescued by a strong series of test screenings. We examine its influence in horror, and how it served as a reaction to the tamer fare of the late 90s and early 00s, while also reflecting the culture and politics of its day. From Jigsaw’s dicey motivations and tactics that are routed in harsh Catholic doctrine, to the use of traps, predicting the surveillance state, whether its fair to classify as torture porn at all, and the sometimes dicey acting choices (was Danny Glover in fact too old for this shit?) Mike, Brian, and Ariel have you covered.